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| Pakistan Says It Has Evidence Against Axact, a Fake Diploma Company | Pakistan Says It Has Evidence Against Axact, a Fake Diploma Company |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| KARACHI, Pakistan — Pakistan’s interior minister said Saturday that a preliminary investigation had uncovered evidence of wrongdoing at Axact, the Karachi-based software company accused of making millions of dollars from fake diplomas, and that investigators would seek assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Interpol. | |
| Investigators who raided Axact offices in Karachi and Islamabad on Tuesday, after the publication of a detailed report on the company in The New York Times, collected “serious, substantive evidence,” the interior minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, said. A decision on whether to file an official criminal report will be made in the next 10 days, he said. | Investigators who raided Axact offices in Karachi and Islamabad on Tuesday, after the publication of a detailed report on the company in The New York Times, collected “serious, substantive evidence,” the interior minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, said. A decision on whether to file an official criminal report will be made in the next 10 days, he said. |
| Interpol and the F.B.I. may be able to provide information “on the universities that have come onto the radar,” Mr. Khan said. “It is also possible that the British legal or law enforcement authorities may also be contacted for legal assistance.” | Interpol and the F.B.I. may be able to provide information “on the universities that have come onto the radar,” Mr. Khan said. “It is also possible that the British legal or law enforcement authorities may also be contacted for legal assistance.” |
| Mr. Khan said that a number of Pakistani government bodies were being asked to provide information on Axact’s activities. A number of people, he added, had come forward with information. | Mr. Khan said that a number of Pakistani government bodies were being asked to provide information on Axact’s activities. A number of people, he added, had come forward with information. |
| The investigation could be expanded to include money laundering charges, he said. | The investigation could be expanded to include money laundering charges, he said. |
| “The accounts are also being verified, and some are being seized,” Mr. Khan told reporters in Islamabad. “The inflow of millions of dollars that has been received — it needs to be seen where it came from and if Axact can provide information on this. If there is enough evidence, then it is possible that this can be broadened to include money laundering. The flow of money has not been identified as yet.” | “The accounts are also being verified, and some are being seized,” Mr. Khan told reporters in Islamabad. “The inflow of millions of dollars that has been received — it needs to be seen where it came from and if Axact can provide information on this. If there is enough evidence, then it is possible that this can be broadened to include money laundering. The flow of money has not been identified as yet.” |
| Mr. Khan also noted that if the government had not acted quickly to investigate Axact, there was a chance that records from the company would have been deleted. | Mr. Khan also noted that if the government had not acted quickly to investigate Axact, there was a chance that records from the company would have been deleted. |
| Investigators at the two Axact offices last week took away several computers, servers and documents, and also interviewed six executives in Islamabad. | Investigators at the two Axact offices last week took away several computers, servers and documents, and also interviewed six executives in Islamabad. |
| On Friday night, Axact’s chief executive, Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh, appeared on a talk show to defend the company, but his comments were rambling and he deflected all questions. He refused to talk about who his partners and associates were, claiming that his competitors would use that information against him. In another statement, uploaded to Facebook, Mr. Shaikh appealed to the leader of the Pakistan Army and the chief justice of the Supreme Court to start a judicial inquiry into the accusations against Axact. | On Friday night, Axact’s chief executive, Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh, appeared on a talk show to defend the company, but his comments were rambling and he deflected all questions. He refused to talk about who his partners and associates were, claiming that his competitors would use that information against him. In another statement, uploaded to Facebook, Mr. Shaikh appealed to the leader of the Pakistan Army and the chief justice of the Supreme Court to start a judicial inquiry into the accusations against Axact. |