US court sentences Pakistani origin man to 12 yrs imprisonment for falsifying records

A US federal judge on Saturday sentenced an American venture capitalist of Pakistan origin to 12 years in prison for falsifying records to hide his work as a foreign agent while lobbying high-level US officials, reported Dawn.

Imaad Zuberi, a California resident, in October 2019, pleaded guilty to violating lobbying, campaign finance, and tax laws through campaign contributions to members of both Republican and Democratic parties.

"The violations were part of a larger surreptitious effort to route foreign money into US elections and to use it to corrupt the US policy-making processes," prosecutors said the court filing.

Prosecutors claimed that illegal money was funnelled from foreign entities over five years between 2012 and 2016, but did not reveal the source of those funds, reported Dawn.

He donated at least USD 100,000 for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and also raised funds for Republican Senator Lindsey Graham in 2014, and then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris in 2015, now US Vice President.

In December 2016, Zuberi had donated USD 900,000 to the Trump inaugural committee. He was a top fundraiser for President Barack Obama's re-election campaign in 2012 as well, reported Dawn.

Prosecutors also accused Zuberi of soliciting members of the House of Representatives, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and other powerful politicians as well to secure favours for his clients.

They accused Zuberi of soliciting foreign nationals and representatives of foreign governments, offering to use his influence in Washington to alter US foreign policy and to create business opportunities for his clients.

US media outlets claimed that Zuberi "went to great lengths to pull off his scheme, hiring lobbyists, retaining public relations professionals and making campaign contributions" to enhance his influence, reported Dawn.

Zuberi, 50, was born in Pakistan, migrated to the United States with his parents when he was three years old and eventually became an American citizen.

(ANI)

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