ISLAMABAD: Pakistani supermodel Ayyan, who is currently detained in a case of money laundering for attempting to fly abroad with US $500,000, divulged before a Customs Court in Rawalpindi that she acquired the sum by selling a property to former interior minister Rehman Malik’s brother, Khalid Malik.
Khalid Malik was allegedly set to travel with Ayyan on the same flight on Saturday morning when she was detained.
Judge Mumtaz Hassan Chaudhry presided over a hearing of Ayyan’s bail plea during which she submitted a written response to the court.
The supermodel's plea for bail was rejected by the court. Customs officer Inspector Saleem had appealed to the court to permit a detailed investigation into where the money came from and why it was being taken out of the country in greater detail. His plea was granted while Ayyan's was rejected.
The model apologised, and asserted that she had no knowledge of the law that bars citizens from carrying an undeclared amount exceeding $10,000 to a foreign country.
Ayyan’s father Raja Hafeez, who was present at the hearing, claimed that the allegation against his daughter was "nothing but propaganda".
He also requested the court to investigate why Ayyan chose to sell her property to Khalid Malik. Raja Hafeez is reportedly unaware of what prompted his daughter to sell the property.
Ayyan was booked to travel on a flight to Dubai from Benazir Bhutto International Airport Saturday morning when Customs officials recovered about US $500,000 from her luggage.
According to the Airport Security Force (ASF), officials spotted the currency tucked away in the pockets of a suitcase she had in her carry-on luggage.
Deputy Collector Customs Naveed Bugvi told Dawn ASF officers stopped Ayyan at the Rawal Lounge after baggage scanners detected an anomaly.
“Customs officials were called and Customs Collector Zeba Azhar found $506,800 in the suitcase,” he said. Mr Bugvi said an FIR was registered under the Customs Act 1969.
Following the registration of a case, Ayyan was sent to the District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital for a medical checkup.
Ayyan's lawyer, Khurram Latif Khosa, son of former governor Punjab, claimed that Ayyan was not going abroad with the smuggled money, and had acted under duress.
The supermodel is currently being held in ladies barrack number six inside Adiala jail.
