New Fraud Allegations Against Ijaz—The Notorious Businessman Linked to Pakistani Intelligence

Mansoor Ijaz is a Pakistani-American businessman with a history of making statements that have harmed Pakistan and Pakistani democracy. David Frum noted one example in December of 2011 when Ijaz wrote an op-ed which lead to the removal of Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's secular and pro-American ambassador to the United States.

Now, The Hindu is reporting that Ijaz recieved loans by claiming to have business dealings with Indian companies, despite the fact that there is no evidence to back up his claims.

For anyone who has followed Ijaz's controversial career, this news is not a surprise:

Mansoor Ijaz, a controversial Pakistani-American businessman with links to the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, raised over $1.5 million from a San Marino bank by claiming to have the backing of a politically-influential Indian business family, court documents available with The Hindu show.

…Mr. Ijaz, in his letter, claims contracts had been signed for both deals in February 2008. He told the bank he would provide further details after a visit to India scheduled for late March that year. “Much hard work,” he wrote in a message to BSI's directors citing temporary business reverses for his default, “has gone into correcting the situation, above all to protect my political reputation and future role in American politics.”

...Tata Motors denies that it has had any dealings with Mr. Ijaz or EcoDrive, and there is no public-domain information available to suggest the businessman ever in fact began work on powertrains. Inquiries with immigration authorities in Mumbai also threw up no evidence that Mr. Ijaz had visited India during that time.

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