Recently reinstated Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Additional Director General and the head of investigation in the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) scam, Zafar Qureshi, was on Saturday denied entry into his office following a bomb alert at the FIA Punjab Headquarters in Lahore.
Sources said the hoax call might have been an attempt to disrupt the meeting of the investigation team. The NICL scam investigating officer had called a meeting of his team at his office in FIA Punjab Headquarters after the SC tasked him with completing the probe.
Qureshi arrived around 12:20pm and found the door of his office locked.
According to the sources, an unknown person called Assistant Director Khwaja Hammadul Rehman on his mobile and warned him about the planting of a bomb in the building. The caller’s mobile number was not visible on Rehman’s mobile.
Civil Lines Station House Officer (SHO) Abid Rasheed and BDS officials were informed of the situation by FIA officials at 10:19am.
The Civil Lines SHO said the unidentified caller said two lines only. “The caller said there was a bomb inside the FIA building and whoever wanted to save his life should leave the building as soon as possible,” Rasheed said.
The building was evacuated at once and 18 people being detained on the premises were handed over to investigation officers. The search process began at 10:30am and the building was cleared at 11:35am.
However, sources said FIA officials had “staged the drama” to stop Qureshi from taking charge of his duties.
