Islamabad graduate found dead after alleged fake US admission scam; FIA case opened
Laiba Ejaz, a gold-medalist graduate of International Islamic University Islamabad, was found hanging in Islamabad's G-10 sector on 9 October after allegedly being defrauded over a US admission. The FIA has registered a case and reportedly arrested a suspect.
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The story, neutrally told
Centre · 2Laiba Ejaz, a 24-year-old physics graduate of International Islamic University Islamabad, was found hanging in Islamabad's G-10 sector on Friday 9 October. The Media LineN “was found dead on Friday, October 9, at a weekly market in Islamabad’s G-10 sector” Read at The Media Line ↗ Geo NewsN “The victim's body was reportedly found hanging by the roadside in Islamabad’s G-10 sector” Read at Geo News ↗ Centre · 1Police told Geo News she was distressed after discovering that admission documents supplied by an agent for a US university were fake, and described the death as suicide; they said the actual cause would be determined once the post-mortem report arrives. Geo NewsN “According to police, the victim was distressed after discovering that the documents provided by the agent were fraudulent.”“the actual cause of death would be determined after the report was received” Read at Geo News ↗ Centre · 2Her family said she had completed her BS with a gold medal and wanted to study abroad; her father, who sells milk and yogurt, sold a plot of land and her mother pawned her jewellery to pay the consultant. Geo NewsN “Laiba's family revealed that she had completed her BS degree from the International Islamic University with a gold medal” Read at Geo News ↗ The Media LineN “Her mother pawned her jewelry to help meet the consultant’s financial demands, according to relatives.” Read at The Media Line ↗
Centre · 2Amounts differ between reports: Geo News said the consultant demanded Rs7 million and the father paid Rs2.1 million in cash, while The Media Line, citing investigators, said the family lost 9.3 million rupees (about $34,000), of which 2.9 million went through her bank account and the rest was paid in cash. Geo NewsN “an immigration consultant had demanded Rs7 million to secure her admission to a US university” Read at Geo News ↗ The Media LineN “2.9 million rupees was transferred through Ejaz’s bank account, while the remainder was paid in cash” Read at The Media Line ↗ Centre · 1The Media Line reported that the suspects promised admission to Harvard University with a scholarship and US visa, and supplied forged letters and receipts; officials said the letter was rejected when she attended a visa interview at the US Embassy in Islamabad. The Media LineN “The suspects allegedly supplied forged admission letters, scholarship documents, and payment receipts.”“the document was rejected when Ejaz appeared for a visa interview at the US Embassy in Islamabad” Read at The Media Line ↗ Centre · 2A relative said she sent a final message asking that her father not be told of the fraud because "He will die." Geo NewsN ““Do not tell my father about the fraud committed against me. He will die.”” Read at Geo News ↗ The Media LineN “pleaded with him not to reveal the alleged fraud to her father” Read at The Media Line ↗
Centre · 1Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered a thorough investigation and "exemplary punishment" for those responsible, and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited the family. The Media LineN “instructing Islamabad Police to arrest those responsible and ensure “exemplary punishment,””“Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry visited the bereaved family on Saturday” Read at The Media Line ↗ Centre · 1On Saturday the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) registered a case against Muhammad Nauman and an alleged female accomplice, Fatima Sarwar, on a complaint from Ejaz's maternal uncle, Amjad Ur Rehman; law enforcement sources said Nauman was arrested in a raid in Islamabad's H-13 sector. The Media LineN “the FIA registered a criminal case against Nauman and an alleged female accomplice, Fatima Sarwar”“Nauman was arrested during a late-night raid in Islamabad’s H-13 sector” Read at The Media Line ↗ Centre · 1FIA Director Gen. Usman Anwar called it an impersonation scam rather than conventional consultancy fraud, saying the accomplice falsely posed as Nauman's contact in the US; sources also alleged Nauman was earlier dismissed from Quetta's Anti-Corruption Department, and material on his phone is being examined for other fraud and blackmail, which remain unproven. The Media LineN “characterized the case as an impersonation scam rather than a conventional education consultancy fraud”“Those allegations remain under investigation.” Read at The Media Line ↗
Centre · 1The case has renewed concern about fraudulent overseas-education consultants in Pakistan; the FIA recently arrested 22 people, including six Foreign Ministry officials, over counterfeit apostille stickers. The Media LineN “The case has renewed concerns about fraudulent consultants targeting Pakistani families seeking educational opportunities abroad.”“arrested 22 people, including six officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs” Read at The Media Line ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre2 outlets
- Framing
- Geo News ran a short police-sourced report on the alleged suicide and scam; The Media Line a longer feature on the fraud investigation, official response and wider consultant-fraud problem.
- Emphasis
- Family sacrifice, the final message, the official response and the FIA case.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Geo News (published earlier) does not cover the arrest, FIR or government response; The Media Line does not attribute the death to suicide in its own words and cites police on how she was found.
- Charged language
- “national outcry”“exemplary punishment”
- For example
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“Police have expanded the scope of their investigation and are examining the case from different angles.” — Geo News
“has sparked a national outcry and prompted a federal investigation” — The Media Line
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Laiba, a gold-medalist graduate of International Islamic University Islamabad, was found hanging in G-10, Islamabad.
- Her family paid a consultant for a US university admission and the documents proved fake.
- Her father sold a plot and her mother's jewellery was used to raise money.
- She sent a final message asking that her father not be told of the fraud.
Where accounts differ
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Amount lost and university involved
- Centre
- Geo News: Rs7 million demanded, Rs2.1 million paid in cash, unnamed US university. The Media Line: 9.3 million rupees lost, Harvard promised.
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Where and how she was found
- Centre
- Geo News: hanging by the roadside in G-10. The Media Line: hanging from a tree at a weekly market in G-10.
International Islamic University Islamabad organisation
Her alma mater, where she earned a gold medal; no statement from it is reported.
“Ejaz had earned a gold medal in physics from the International Islamic University Islamabad” — The Media Line
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre2 articles
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Sympathetic Brief police- and family-sourced report presenting the death as an alleged suicide following a fake-admission scam.
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Pakistani Gold Medalist’s Death Sparks Fraud Investigation Over Fake US Scholarship
Sympathetic Detailed feature on the fraud case, government response and systemic consultant fraud, centred on the family's sacrifice.
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 10 Oct 08:13 First Geo NewsN Islamabad student allegedly dies by suicide after losing millions in fake US university admission scam
- 11 Oct 15:16 +31h 3m The Media LineN Pakistani Gold Medalist’s Death Sparks Fraud Investigation Over Fake US Scholarship
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.