FIA produces Sarim Burney in municipal court

• The FIA ​​IO is asking the court to order Burney's pre-trial detention.
• U.S. authorities are also investigating Burney's involvement in trafficking.
• Social workers were arrested in Karachi after returning from the United States.

KARACHI: Social worker Sarim Burney was produced before the judicial magistrate of the city court on Thursday after his arrest by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) at the Jinnah International Airport a day earlier.

Burney, according to the FIA, was arrested on human trafficking charges, including smuggling and illegally sending children to the United States.

He was, according to the FIA, accused of trafficking more than 25 children to the United States and illegally adopting them into the country. He was also charged with fraud and falsifying documents, the agency said.

Subsequently, allegations of child trafficking to the United States sparked an investigation against the social worker.

The FIA ​​investigator asked the court to order Burney remanded in custody for investigation into the matter.

Lawyer Syed Asif Ali represented Burney in the case. He asked the court to allow some time for the social worker's team of lawyers to reach the court, after which the court granted them 15 minutes, adjourning the matter for some time.

“Initially, there were reports that Sarim Burney was being taken to the Malir court. Our legal team had gone there,” the lawyer said, asking the court to give him some respite.

Earlier today, the FIA ​​said the social worker had admitted “wrongdoing” in the human trafficking case brought against him following his arrest.

“Sarim Burney was interviewed twice. He admitted to making an error in his initial statement after his arrest,” officials said.

Burney – who runs the Sarim Burney Welfare Trust International, a non-profit entity – was arrested in Karachi on Wednesday after landing in the city from the United States.

This arrest comes after a complaint was filed against him by the American authorities.

The FIA ​​further revealed that the social worker was also under surveillance by US authorities during his recent visit. FIA officials said Geo Newsthat US authorities are also investigating the social worker's child trafficking.

The FIA ​​confirmed the development after registering a case in its human trafficking cell against Burney. “Further cases of child trafficking and money laundering will be registered against Sarim Burney,” the officials said.

On the other hand, sources said Geo News said the file of children transferred to the United States had been provided to FIA authorities by the embassy.

The social worker was accused of smuggling a little girl named Haya into the United States, the FIA ​​said.

“More than 15 of those sent to the United States are girls,” agency officials said.

Officials added that Burney bought the baby from his parents for Rs 1 million and sent him to the United States. “More than one person helped Sarim Burney buy the girl.”

FIA officials recorded the statement of the baby's parents who, it added, are extremely poor.

In the case registered against Burney, he was accused of smuggling at least 20 newborns in a year for adoption by parents in the United States, the FIA ​​said.

Meanwhile, sources said Burney's wife Aliya is also a beneficiary in the trust documents.

They added that Burney's wife could also be named in the case once the documents are confirmed by the Sindh government.