Man sentenced to five years for scamming pilgrims

Over 14 years after he had deceived pilgrims travelling to Saudi Arabia for Hajj, an accountability court in Rawalpindi sentenced a man to five years in prison while imposing a fine of Rs2.3 million on him, an official said on Friday.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had filed a reference against Ghulam Qadir Khan.



In 2003, Khan had taken money from 105 pilgrims for accommodation and a host of other facilities in both Makkah and in Madina during the annual pilgrimage. Despite having taken the money, Khan did not provide his clients with the promised facilities or services.

Subsequently, NAB Rawalpindi filed a reference against Khan.

The accountability court convicted Khan and sentenced him to five years of rigorous imprisonment. Moreover, the court imposed a fine of Rs2.3 million on him.

Properties belonging to Khan have been forfeited.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2017.