Court rejects Ayyan Ali's bail request

Published June 3, 2015
Ayyan's lawyer maintained that the model charges Rs0.5 million per show in foreign countries and is one of the investors in Pakistan. ─ Photo courtesy Ayyan Ali Facebook page
Ayyan's lawyer maintained that the model charges Rs0.5 million per show in foreign countries and is one of the investors in Pakistan. ─ Photo courtesy Ayyan Ali Facebook page

RAWALPINDI: A special Customs Court in Rawalpindi denied super model Ayyan Ali's bail application after hearing arguments from both sides on Wednesday.

Ayyan was arrested in March on charges of smuggling US $500,000 abroad. Since then, she is being held at Adiala Jail.

Counsel for Ayyan Ali, Advocate Latif Khosa stated in the Customs Court that she was carrying money to hand over to her brother, who was travelling to Pakistan from Dubai.

In a review on Ayyan's bail application, Khosa said the money seized is the joint property of the model and her brother. Khosa defended Ayyan stating that the model was not taking money out of the country and was arrested before she could get her boarding card.

He also said that access to the VIP lounge is not difficult and anyone can get access on payment of Rs 1000, adding she was arrested at the point where there was no customs counter. He further added that the job of the Airport Security Force (ASF) is to check for weapons.

The model charges US $500,000 per show in foreign countries and is one of the investors in Pakistan, Khosa said, adding that it is a conspiracy to stop investors coming to Pakistan.

Customs lawyer Malik Kamal said the model was carrying the money in her personal baggage, adding the model failed to justify her stance and was caught red handed.

The court denied the bail application after earlier reserving its decision.

Opinion

Editorial

Punishing evaders
02 May, 2024

Punishing evaders

THE FBR’s decision to block mobile phone connections of more than half a million individuals who did not file...
Engaging Riyadh
Updated 02 May, 2024

Engaging Riyadh

It must be stressed that to pull in maximum foreign investment, a climate of domestic political stability is crucial.
Freedom to question
02 May, 2024

Freedom to question

WITH frequently suspended freedoms, increasing violence and few to speak out for the oppressed, it is unlikely that...
Wheat protests
Updated 01 May, 2024

Wheat protests

The government should withdraw from the wheat trade gradually, replacing the existing market support mechanism with an effective new one over the next several years.
Polio drive
01 May, 2024

Polio drive

THE year’s fourth polio drive has kicked off across Pakistan, with the aim to immunise more than 24m children ...
Workers’ struggle
Updated 01 May, 2024

Workers’ struggle

Yet the struggle to secure a living wage — and decent working conditions — for the toiling masses must continue.