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Pakistani admiral's deportation imminent

Nirshan Perera

By the end of this week Austin, Texas, resident Mansur-ul-Haq could be on a plane bound for Pakistan.

If he is, there will be a retinue of police and military officials eager to roll out the welcome mat. But it won't be a joyous homecoming by any stretch of the imagination.

The retired navy admiral is wanted on corruption charges in his home country and has been desperately fighting extradition since his arrest by the FBI last month.

The government of General Pervez Musharraf wants the decorated 63-year-old admiral, who has been living a decidedly unglamorous new immigrant life with his wife and children for the past four years -- leagues away from his former role as a military bigwig in the government of Benazir Bhutto -- to own up for the sins of his past.

Haq stands accused of accepting more than $3.3 million in bribes from French defence contractors. Several of his cronies have already been convicted by Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau and are enjoying their retirement in military jail cells.

Before the axe of justice dropped on him, Haq fled the country in 1997 and settled with his family in Austin, Texas. But working with Islamabad, the FBI finally enforced an international arrest warrant last month and picked him up.

Since then, Haq has languished at an undisclosed federal facility near Austin. Despite his repeated arguments for release on medical grounds, US Magistrate Judge Stephen Capelle has denied the former admiral bail, citing a large risk of flight.

At a US federal court hearing scheduled for this Thursday, Haq's fate may finally be decided. Although federal prosecutor Ronald Sievert would not comment on the case, trial watchers say the deportation order is imminent.

If convicted of the corruption charges in Pakistan, Haq could face up to 14 years in prison.

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