Ahmed Faiz, one of the central figures in the 2010 Hajj scam, is now in the custody of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), following his deportation from Saudi Arabia, the apex court was informed on Friday.
The FIA shared this information in a report submitted before a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court -- which is hearing a case regarding the implementation of its December 6, 2013 judgment about repatriation of the accused.
A senior FIA official also confirmed to The Express Tribune that Faiz, a building supervisor, had been deported by Saudi Arabia and was now on a 14-day remand. Faiz has eluded arrest for the last four years.
The court in its December 6 verdict had observed that Pakistan is a sovereign state and the government is bound to ensure that any person involved in a crime should be brought back to the country to face the law under the principle of rule of law.
The court had also asked the government to bring up the United Nations Convention on Elimination of Corruption with Saudi authorities for Faiz’s extradition.
The FIA report revealed that it had published a notice in Urdu-language newspapers in Saudi Arabia through the ministry of religious affairs, offering a reward of Rs1 million for providing any information leading to the suspect.
It said Faiz had gone into hiding – after the news about the top court’s proceedings reached Saudi Arabia – and was planning to move to Taif or Riyadh. The report claimed that prior to his arrest an incident of ‘dramatic interception and escape’ was reported by the Intelligence Bureau (IB).
According to the report, during the course of inquiry conducted by the FIA, it came to the fore that out of 631 Hajj Group Organisations (HGO), 33 HGOs had charged an extra amount of Rs5,000 from each pilgrim in the name of Hajj compensation amount fund, guarantee or security etc.
“The total number of pilgrims pertaining to these 33 HGOs comes to 4,480 and the amount involved is Rs22, 40,000. So far, out of the 33 HGOs, nine HGOs have returned the extra-charged amount to the pilgrims and have submitted their affidavits in this regard,” it said.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 13th, 2014.
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