RAWALPINDI: Cash smuggling scandal-hit supermodel Ayyan Ali’s father has been shot and wounded, when he was coming back after ‘attending’ the hearing of his daughter in a Rawalpindi court.
Earlier, Ayyan arrived at the court for the hearing where her judicial remand was extended by another 14 days till April 11. The model’s father had come to see his daughter when he was attacked by an unidentified person, who shot him in the arm. Following the attack, he was rushed to Benazir Bhutto Hospital in Rawalpindi.
Ayyan’s father Raja Hafeez has nominated Rehman Malik’s brother, Khalid Malik in the FIR. Hafeez revealed that he had been receiving threats over the past few weeks.
The hearing was held just a day after customs officials deemed her proof of currency ownership as dubious following interrogation. Her property dealer Mumtaz was made a part of the probe following her claims that the money was earned after selling her five properties.
The court questioned about the B-class facilities for Ayyan, to which, senior official of the investigation team, Zargham Khan, said that a person booked under the Customs Act is not entitled to B-class facilities. Later, Ayyan’s lawyers withdrew the request to have their client transferred to B-class in prison.
The court was also informed that investigation was underway and that an FIR would soon be submitted. The court ordered for the FIR to be submitted by April 11.
Talking to media, Khan said the customs case is clear and it had been proved “she was going abroad along with the cash. Attempting to smuggle is equivalent to smuggling.”
Ayyan’s property dealer earlier submitted documents which are being verified and will be produced at the next hearing. “Punishment in a smuggling case is five to 14 years imprisonment if convicted,” Khan said. He added that Ayyan had paid 14 visits to UAE and the rest to Malaysia and other countries.
Ayyan Ali was arrested from the Islamabad Airport on March 14 by Customs officials and was accused of attempting to smuggle $0.5 million to Dubai.
