Lahore resident's remand extended by 4 days over UK anti-immigrant riots

Farhan Asif was initially arrested by Lahore police and subsequently transferred to the FIA

A district court on Thursday extended the physical remand of a Lahore resident for an additional four days, in connection with allegations of his involvement in spreading disinformation that allegedly fuelled recent anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant riots in the United Kingdom.

The suspect, Farhan Asif, was initially apprehended by Lahore police and subsequently transferred to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) cybercrime wing. The FIA presented Asif before a magistrate, requesting his physical remand to further investigate his role in the incident.

On Wednesday, a judicial magistrate granted the FIA one-day physical custody of Asif, who is accused of uploading a misleading news article on the Channel3Now website. The investigating officer informed the court that Asif was charged under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016.

During today’s hearing, the judicial magistrate agreed to extend Asif’s remand by four more days, ordering his reappearance in court following the extended period.

The agency’s legal representative argued that further evidence needed to be collected from the suspect, and an investigation into his posts on social media platform X was necessary. Judge Imran Abid approved the extension, allowing the FIA more time to gather the required evidence.

This development comes more than a week after the United Kingdom experienced widespread unrest following the fatal stabbing of three young girls in Southport.

UK media reports identified the obscure platform Channel3Now as the source of false information, which incorrectly claimed that the 17-year-old British-born suspect in the stabbing was a Muslim immigrant who had entered the UK by boat.