KARACHI: Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Karachi carried out a raid at head office of BOL News in compliance with court orders.

During operation directorate team accompanied by BOL News representatives, compiled list of inventory items including DSNGs, studio equipment, cameras, camera control units, monitors and other imported equipment in building. Raid was conducted after search warrant was issued by district and sessions judge. According to sources familiar with matter, court issued order based on suspicions of non-custom paid media equipment being present at BOL News office.

Upon executing search warrant, Customs officials were instructed to conduct thorough search of all rooms and areas within building and prepare list of any non-Customs paid equipment discovered during search.

They were also ordered to detain any such equipment in accordance with law. During search, officials also took videos and pictures of equipment as per court order. According to sources, equipment found to be in violation of law will be confiscated and its market value and duty will be assessed by authorities.

Last week, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested Axact and BOL TV CEO Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh from Islamabad Airport on charges of bribing former Sessions Judge for his acquittal in fake degrees case.

Shaikh was arrested shortly after he landed in Islamabad on flight from Karachi.

BOL TV chief executive is charged with bribing Additional District and Sessions Judge Pervez-ul-Qadir Memon to get favourable verdict in Axact fake degrees case. FIA had previously arrested Axact CEO in 2015 after investigators found hundreds of thousands of forged degrees and students ID cards from secret office of company in Karachi.

Television footage from 2015 FIA raid on Axact offices in Karachi showed piles of degree templates from different universities in rooms at building.

A New York Times report had revealed that Axact was running worldwide, multimillion-dollar fake diploma empire from secret office.

Multi-million money laundering case was also registered against Shaikh and Axact management, but chief executive was later acquitted by now-disgraced judge, Pervez-ul-Qadir Memon.

Published in The Daily National Courier, March, 14 2023

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