LAHORE: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has launched a probe into a raid conducted on a private property by some of its officials over a consultancy payment dispute, allegedly in collusion with one of the parties.

According to the complainant, Shazim Ahmad, he was called to the office of the opposing party (Khawar, Muazzam and others) situated in DHA, Lahore, last month on the pretext of a meeting, where some FIA officials allegedly entered forcibly, vandalised the premises, and planted fake passports and Saudi work permits inside his vehicle.

In an application to the interior minister, the complainant alleged he was forcibly taken away by the FIA officials in a vehicle, and his important documents and a costly laptop were seized.

“The seized items have not been returned, nor have the copies of the confiscation records been provided. When the matter was brought to the high-ups, I was released from the FIA custody,” he further alleged and added the suspects later destroyed the Saudi work permits and removed the fake passports from the seized items.

During the custody, he alleged the officials demanded a blank cheque and inquired about some unrelated financial transactions.

Following the complaint, the FIA high-ups directed the Lahore deputy director concerned to investigate the matter.

The complainant requested the FIA director general (DG) to transfer the inquiry from the Lahore Zone to Islamabad, ensuring a transparent probe.

An FIA Lahore spokesperson did not respond to Dawn’s query in this regard.

Published in Dawn, November 8th, 2025