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United States (US) Democratic Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz fired a Pakistani-origin information technology (IT) staffer following his arrest on a bank fraud charge at a Virginia airport where he was attempting to fly to Lahore.
Wasserman Schultz spokesman David Damron said Imran Awan was fired by the Florida lawmaker on Tuesday.
Awan's attorney, Chris Gowen, confirmed that his client was arrested at Dulles Airport on Monday. He said Awan was cleared to travel and had informed the House of his plans to visit his family before the scheduled trip.
The 37-year-old Awan of Lorton, Virginia, was arraigned Tuesday in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on one count of bank fraud.
He pleaded not guilty and was released pursuant to a high-intensity supervision program, including the restriction that he not travel beyond a 50-mile radius of his home, according to the court.
An affidavit filed with the criminal complaint states there is probable cause to believe that Awan and his wife, Hina Alvi, engaged in a scheme to defraud the Congressional Federal Credit Union based on misrepresentations made to obtain a loan.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent Brandon Merriman said in the affidavit that the misrepresentations revolved around written assurances that the home serving as collateral for the loan was a "principal residence".
Merriman said that the credit union normally does not provide home equity lines of credit when the home used to secure the loan is a rental. That's because they are riskier forms of collateral.
The investigation, which included physical surveillance and interviews, determined that the couple did not reside at the property used to secure the loan.
The agent also attested that bank records show $283,000 was wired to two individuals in Pakistan.
He stated that agents followed Alvi in March to Dulles International Airport and that she was allowed to board a flight.
She has not returned. She has a return flight for September 2017, but the agent said that he believes Alvi has no intention of returning to the US.
The FBI agent also stated Awan purchased a flight ticket to Doha, Qatar, and then to Lahore, Pakistan. He purchased a return flight for a date in January 2018.
Gowen says the federal bank fraud count stems from a "modest real estate matter" and is motivated by anti-Muslim bigotry.
He said he's confident Awan "will soon be able to clear his name and get on with his life".
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for August 21, according to Gowen.
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On DawnNews
Comments (73) Closed
Jul 27, 2017 12:48am
This incident should be thoroughly investigated to ensure that there is no foul play
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Jul 27, 2017 01:49am
Anybody can be corrupted, not only Pakistani.
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Jul 27, 2017 02:05am
People like these make life harder for hard working , honest, law abiding Pakistanis. It is a shameful act and should be condemn. Let the law take it's course because in USA justice always prevail. If they are guilty of fraud they will be brought to justice in US not in Pakistan.
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Jul 27, 2017 02:12am
You can scam Pakistani taxpayers but scamming US taxpayers a little more difficult.
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Jul 27, 2017 02:52am
@Vinod Narang
Yes, US justice always prevails. 1,000,000 dead Iraqis who were killed in the search for non-existent WMDs will surely agree with you.
Hasan
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Jul 27, 2017 03:09am
Does not sound like a crime. He should sell his collateral and pay the money back to credit union. Federal credit unions treat borrowers like criminals anyway. Their loan process is protracted , costs more and is a headache. Go with a commercial bank , interest rates are a little higher but much easier process.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:10am
Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the first Jewish congresswoman elected from Florida. She works very hard to get this post. Don't blame her she is the one who have love and patience for Pakistanis. This Lady, the one and only, stands whenever Pakistanis need her. She is loyal to pakistan and Pakistanis. She is very very good and sincere to her mother country. People like her and she joined the US congress. This will make the US greate again.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:11am
@Vinod Narang - you will find black sheep in every society and country, who wants to become rich through any means. Pakistan is no exception!
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Jul 27, 2017 03:38am
Let us not defend this Pakistani IT person. There has to be truth. We Pakistanis do like to make quick money and like short cuts. Recently, someone from Pakistan wanted to pay my utilities bills for the whole year provided that I deposit half of the money to his accounts.
We living overseas do not realize that we are hurting millions of honest Pakistanis to secure good jobs with our dishonest practices and behavior.
We have no one to blame but ourselves.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:41am
Fraud is fraud so no excuses here however he is innocent until proven guilty.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:42am
Rental versus primary residence status may have changed after the loan application or worst scenario may be misrepresentation on part of the gentleman. Either way, it does not seem to be the reason for arrest - there must be more to it which has not been made public yet
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Jul 27, 2017 03:51am
We people in South Asia do not seem to understand that white collar corruption is seen as a very serious crime in many Western countries. I personally knew of an American (not immigrant) who was jailed for 18 years for simple crime of falsifying income taxes. In most Asian countries, white collar corruption is seen as normal and people tend to look the other way, and so it can create real problems when we migrate to a Western country and take the same approach. There is definitely a cultural gap in this matter.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:03am
@Ishaq Not anybody can be corrupted. Only corrupt people can be corrupted! The facts do not indicate that someone tried to lure Awan to alleged corruption.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:10am
Bad people come from every origin !
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Jul 27, 2017 04:11am
Certainly it is anti thief bigotry.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:19am
Such people are a blot on the efficient and hard-working people ... No wonder why they complain so much!
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Jul 27, 2017 04:25am
I have worked and employed several folks from Pakistan in Canada . Most are well intended human beings but some are definitely willing to push the law until their luck runs out . I had an employee that would claim fuel for routes they did not drive; in the day and age of gps telematics easy to get caught. They would then swear on their family and relegion to lie further .
On another occasion delivery truck was handed to a 20 yr old family member so that they could moonlight another job; Integrity is missing from the value system and it's definitely ok to defraud if you don't get caught . Sad that honesty has no value and being honest is treated as being naive and stupid .
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Jul 27, 2017 04:40am
@Vinod Narang, I do agree with you. This shows people are not afraid of law. In Australia it is worse, people working in tax office, along with his family made fraud of more than a million. they are white and pure born in this country (Australia). The law should be strict and fair, thats all!
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Jul 27, 2017 04:42am
Renting is not a crime. There are thousands of latinos living in units designed for one family but it's occupied by several families.
Investigate not discriminate.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:43am
thousands of cases are filed, arrests made, deportations done everyday. some involving Pakistanis. why is this particular case is newsworthy? I dont know who is Debbie the congresswoman . I dont know Mr. and Mrs. Alvi. Are they well known in Pakistan?
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Jul 27, 2017 04:46am
Heard he is the brain behind hacking into Republican server during the presidential election.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:47am
Yet another Pakistani committing financial fraud in the west! I was in college with many Pakistani students who, upon graduating, maxed out their credit cards, and simply left the US.
Oh, and how easy it is to simply accused the western governments of 'bigotry'. Next charge would be racism.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:48am
By brining up identity, bigger mess for ALL lawabiding and hardworking Muslims. Everyone will have to now pay for his greed and crime and bringing up identity politics. 95% Muslims pay price of mischief by 5%. The self created identity politics joins everyone together in crime.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:56am
Don't commit fraud and blame it on anti Muslim sentiment. They wouldn't arrest you if you did not wire $250000 to Pakistan after getting the money fraudulently.
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Jul 27, 2017 04:59am
@Ishaq
yes anyone can be corrupt
but the percentage seems higher in Pakistan
they are used to the lax laws of the country and feel they can play the same tricks outside
doesn't work that way
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Jul 27, 2017 05:10am
@Ishaq.... And that makes it OK does it? $283,000 has been sent to Pakistan. The couple had no intention of going back to the USA. Fraud plain and simple. Nothing to do with anti Muslim bigotry.
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Jul 27, 2017 05:14am
So sad....why always our people tarnish the image of community.
Shakil
Toronto
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Jul 27, 2017 06:08am
@AHAQ "This incident should be thoroughly investigated to ensure that there is no foul play" American law enforcement will greatly benefit from the directive you have provided here. Otherwise they do not know how to proceed.
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Jul 27, 2017 06:15am
What's the point of this article? Does it look like anyone will learn or change anything in this country or care to 'learn'?
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Jul 27, 2017 06:16am
This is very common with our people here in Canada. The trick is to have many credit cards and keep increasing limit by and taking out max limit and putting it back . In a year when you have touched 100k.
Pull out max limit and go underground..! Simple
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Jul 27, 2017 06:41am
He should be deported back to Pakistan. Now FBI will check where he sent the money and what was the final use of these funds. It will be safe for USA to deport all Pakistani immigrants along with their family.
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Jul 27, 2017 06:49am
Send him behind bar if found guilty. Doesn't matter what origin or religion he belongs to. Fraudulence is a major crime.
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Jul 27, 2017 06:52am
@Ishaq what's your point ?
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Jul 27, 2017 07:06am
Ok,he commits a fraud and people are calling it conspiracy against Muslims. He is a fraud and needs to be punished as harshly as possible as per the law.
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Jul 27, 2017 07:09am
@RK - your comments do not make any sense. Sorry
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Jul 27, 2017 07:13am
I live in the US and Democratic Representative Debbie Wasserman is very unpopular. She has played a very dirty role in the Presidential Election in 2016. Debbie has been accused of rigging the Presidential Primaries in favor of Hillary Clinton. However, this case should be judged on its merit. Let the law takes its own course and we should wait for the judgment. I am confident that justice will prevail. Imran Awan has a lawyer and he will be given a full opportunity to defend himself.
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Jul 27, 2017 08:04am
Muslims are always under the microscope in the US, there was no need to have such a high profile investigation over such a small thing, looks like the FBI was looking for an excuse. Wasserman Schulz is no saint, she had to resign her post because she was being dishonestly corrupt in the previous camping siding with Hillary illegally against Bernie Sanders just to help her own career.
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Jul 27, 2017 08:06am
@RK scamming US tax payers is very easy, the us government does it all the time in costly wars started to enrich defense industry corporation while us infrastructure crumbles and almost a third of the population lives in near poverty.
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Jul 27, 2017 08:18am
The way I see it, he owns a rental property but does not live there but probably stated that he lives there in order to get the loan.and based on that he received the loan. If thats the case I agree with his lawyer that its not a big deal.
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Jul 27, 2017 08:31am
@Ishaq "Anybody can be corrupted, not only Pakistani" ... So what is the conclusion? Lets be corrupt and ignore whoever is corrupt?
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Jul 27, 2017 08:53am
Another Pakistani disgracing our country.
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Jul 27, 2017 08:58am
@Vinod Narang you are right. There was an Indian Business Man who was consulting with US Air Force and he bribed people in Air Force department to sell them electronic equipment. He is serving jail right now.
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Jul 27, 2017 09:20am
@Vinod Narang agreed.
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Jul 27, 2017 09:26am
This indeed is a VERY common technique to 'meet' the personal residence requirement. I know of at least a few cases where the Chinese/ HK landlord removed tenant family pics from the house and put his own up to make it look like he lived there. Hardly something investigated; there msy be other reasons to suspect this couple.
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Jul 27, 2017 09:34am
If he really stole information from her devices that would make me sick to my stomach.
He would give bad name to every Pakistani and American Pakistani people would never be trusted in IT government jobs.His family earned $4 million in 6 years
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Jul 27, 2017 10:02am
@Hasan But if it is not then why numerous people try for getting US visa some or how ???
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Jul 27, 2017 10:05am
@SACHBOL He is an American citizen who did the crime on American soil. He has disgraced his country of citizenship.
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Jul 27, 2017 10:06am
@Khurram Understand the context... he means to say what has mentioning of his Pakistani origin got to do with what he did.
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Jul 27, 2017 10:14am
This was common practice but now it's more under the microscope. Individual in question was in a good job should have been more careful when making false claims.
He will be jailed for this may be little but clearing his name I don't think it's that easy, that's USA not Pakistan where anything goes and all evil fly unchecked. To be super power of the world they have established some rules which are followed.
The false claim is lie and there will be price for actions.
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Jul 27, 2017 10:22am
Why is this headline news and portrayed in a way that it was some form.of injustice?
The guy committed fraud and got fired for it. It's shameful the way we drag islamophobia or racism.into everything
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Jul 27, 2017 10:38am
There is no point bringing a Pakistani angle to the narrative, these are petty crimes committed everywhere.
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Jul 27, 2017 10:51am
In my view, this should not be a news related to racial discrimination. One employee committed a fraud and got booted out. That's all. How the Pakistan's pride is hurt? This is not a terrorism related crime. People of all kinds of ethnicity live in US and commit all kinds of crime.
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Jul 27, 2017 11:05am
@Hero He was not arrested for renting. He was arrested for fraud. Interest rates on loans are lower if the borrower lives in the house, than for a house which is rented out. He lied on his application for loan closing that he was going to live in it but rented it out and never lived in it. Loans for owner occupied homes are insured by federal agencies. In effect he defrauded the federal Govt.
Please try to understand there are crimes other than murder, and robbing at gunpoint. They are called white collar crimes. Indians and Pakistanis don't seem to understand that.
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Jul 27, 2017 11:18am
A Pakistani is arrested and it is news ? Anyone can be arrested
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Jul 27, 2017 11:40am
@Ishaq : Sure. SATYAM CORPORATION, AN INDIAN BASED COMPANY, a major IT service provider at World Bank was fired and was banned for the life time because of selling the identities of World Bank officers for merely 25 dollars per person.
Fraud occurs, and it is not confined to a particular geographical area, creed, religion, color or country of origin.
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Jul 27, 2017 11:44am
If one hears Hasan Nisar's talks on Youtube and reads such articles one wonders what is like Pakistan's national character.
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Jul 27, 2017 11:57am
The loan against rental house story is not the whole picture, actually it isn't even an issue here. FBI won't be tracking people who lie on loan applications, otherwise the FBI will have to hire half the US population to track the other half. Keep in mind that while the money might have left the US, the house (collateral) is still here and can be liquidated by the bank to recover the loan amount, and then some.
The actual story (which is conveniently left out above) has to do with fraud related to double billing. You can search for it on other sites.
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Jul 27, 2017 12:06pm
I think this is conspiracy to defame Pakistan.
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Jul 27, 2017 12:17pm
@AW This type of fraud and VAT fraud is quite prevalent by members of our communities in the West. It brings shame and suspicion on all peoples from the Indian subcontinent.
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Jul 27, 2017 12:23pm
@sanjeev : Entire world would agree to that.
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Jul 27, 2017 12:52pm
@Hasan plz read the comment again it says "in USA"
I've failed to understand that why ppl like you drag irrelevant things & divert from the core discussion.
It's a topic about a financial irregularity or a fraud to be more precise, not abt a genocide
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Jul 27, 2017 01:26pm
@RANJIT "yes anyone can be corrupt but the percentage seems higher in Pakistan they are used to the lax laws of the country and feel they can play the same tricks outside doesn't work that way"
Just Google the amount of Indians get caught every year in USA/U.K/Canada on tax evasion, medical Insurance fraud, Visa fraud etc.
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Jul 27, 2017 01:39pm
The same allegation can be levelled against a million people in the UK.
There was no financial default by the borrower.
He could have ordered to make the proper disclosure to the lender and settle accordingly.
How could this merit termination?
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Jul 27, 2017 02:49pm
Nobody is above company law and law of the land. Why is this a big news?
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Jul 27, 2017 02:57pm
@Be Real On what basis are you concluding my dear friend. The news is just short and may not have any concrete details of the person being an innocent or culprit.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:17pm
@Ishaq "Anybody can be corrupted, not only Pakistani"
Very true. But its all about proportions and probability, my friend. Its the same as saying, anyone can be an extremist or terror-supporter - you catch my drift, I am sure.
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Jul 27, 2017 03:43pm
How is this even news
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Jul 27, 2017 04:53pm
@sanjeev I think you mean Indians
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Jul 27, 2017 05:11pm
From the news report, it seems there is only a suspicion not the real act of fraud carried out by the couple so far.His wife was scheduled to return in Sep 2017 which is still a month a few day from now. He has not been allowed to leave the country due to mere suspicion and the loan he got on a rental property must be less than its value in the market anyway or did I miss something here?
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Jul 27, 2017 06:37pm
@Anti-Corruption_Pakistani
I agree with you.
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Jul 27, 2017 07:47pm
@Fahad Farooq faisal thanks for speaking the truth
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Jul 28, 2017 11:26am
It is as if action against corrupt ,unethical is anti islamic. Such people should be ostracized from the community as they give muslims a bad name.
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Jul 28, 2017 11:49pm
@Vinod Narang : This is a common crime and is being committed every day in every country, so let's not make it a Pakistan issue here. If he is guilty he will be dealt accordingly and if he is innocent he will be freed. Let's not make any judgment yet since the case is still pending.
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