Four suspects placed in short FIA custody
Investigators from the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Pakistan’s federal crime agency, have taken four men into short physical custody in a probe over forged Pakistani travel documents. On Wednesday, Judicial Magistrate (West) Shaista Khan Kundi in Islamabad ordered two days of remand so officers can gather evidence, and directed that the men be brought back to court on 30 October.
The four — Muhammad Zia, Furqan Ahmed, Salman Kazim Rozi and Naimat Ullah — were produced after their arrest on 27 October. Inspector Muhammad Aqib of the FIA Counter Terrorism Wing in Islamabad had asked for 14 days, arguing that ordinary police custody under Section 61 of the Code of Criminal Procedure was about to run out. The magistrate limited custody to two days for investigation and evidence collection.
How the 12,096-document inquiry led here
The matter grew from FIA Enquiry No. 43/2025, which examined 12,096 fake or altered Pakistani passports belonging to Afghan nationals that Saudi authorities had handed over. According to the first information report (FIR), officers later found that 10 Tracking IDs — the codes used to follow and check passport applications — had been processed unlawfully, allegedly with help from National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) staff. NADRA is the body that maintains Pakistan’s identity and biometric records.
The complaint says those Tracking IDs were used to build files for people who either did not exist or had no lawful claim to a Pakistani passport, and that each of the ten codes marks a separate breach of NADRA registration rules. The FIR frames the episode as a deeper failure of trust and security in how passports and identities are managed, and notes that counterfeit travel papers can aid human trafficking, terrorism and other cross-border crime.
Who is named and what investigators want next
Six people are listed as nominated accused, all tied in the FIR to NADRA’s NRC-2 centre on Murree Road, Rawalpindi, which is also given as the place of occurrence: Mohsin Tariq, a former deputy assistant director and officer in charge there; Muhammad Zia, a former senior executive and data entry operator at the same office; Furqan Ahmed; Imran Ahmad; Salman Kazim Rozi; and Naimat Ullah. Only the four produced in court were named in the remand request. The FIR was lodged on 27 October at the FIA Counter Terrorism Wing in Islamabad. NADRA is the complainant through its employee Muhammad Usman Haider.
In seeking longer custody, the inspector said detectives still need to map links among NADRA, the Directorate General Immigration and Passports (IMPASS) — the Interior Ministry wing that issues passports, visas and citizenship papers — and overseas employment promoters said to have handled paperwork for Afghan nationals. He added that recoveries remain pending and that the accused must be confronted with one another to fix responsibility. The FIR says impersonated applicants, biometric attesters, passport beneficiaries, IMPASS staff, promoters and others will also be examined.
The case invokes Sections 6, 8 and 10 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, plus the Passport Act, 1974, the Emigration Ordinance, 1979, the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, the NADRA Ordinance, 2000, the Foreigners Act, 1948, and several Pakistan Penal Code provisions on cheating, forgery, use of forged papers, criminal breach of trust by a public servant, common intention and abetment.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- Enquiry No. 43/2025: FIA opens an inquiry into 12,096 forged or tampered Pakistani passports of Afghan nationals returned by Saudi authorities.
- 27 October: FIR registered at FIA Counter Terrorism Wing, Islamabad; four accused arrested the same day.
- 27 October: NADRA, through Muhammad Usman Haider, appears as complainant; six people are nominated over alleged Tracking ID misuse at Rawalpindi’s Murree Road centre.
- Wednesday (remand hearing): Magistrate Shaista Khan Kundi grants two-day physical remand instead of the 14 days sought.
- 30 October: Accused ordered to be produced again in court.
Aasan alfaaz mein
FIA ne char logon ko giraftar kiya hai jin par ilzam hai ke woh jali Pakistani passport ke mamle se jude hain. Saudi Arab se wapis aane wale hazaron Afghani logon ke passport is case ki bunyad hain. Adalat ne in charon ko do din ke liye FIA ke hawale kiya hai taake tahqeeq jari rahe. Aam shehri ke liye yeh is baat ki nishani hai ke identity aur passport ke nizaam mein dhoka security aur safar dono ke liye khatra ban sakta hai.
