Harvard fraud: Family loses daughter and savings in Islamabad

The family of a 24-year-old physics graduate in Islamabad lost their daughter and substantial savings following a failed attempt to secure admission to Harvard University. Initial police findings indicate Laiba Muhammad Ijaz died by suicide on October 9. Her relatives reject this assessment, while investigators continue their inquiry into the circumstances of her death.

The alleged fraud involved Muhammad Noman, a man accused of deceiving the family. Noman was arrested on October 11 and died on October 20 after being shot in police custody. He had met Laiba earlier this year at a call center in Islamabad’s Blue Area. After she left that job, Noman began visiting her father, Rana Muhammad Ijaz, at his dairy shop in the G-10 neighborhood. Ijaz stated that Noman claimed to be a Supreme Court employee and presented a service card to facilitate the application.

The family paid 2.2 million rupees, approximately $7,900, for initial university fees. Noman later required 7.2 million rupees, roughly $25,900, for proof of funds, insisting the money pass through his account for currency conversion. To meet these demands, Ijaz sold a plot of land and family jewelry. The application file included purported admission and scholarship letters, immigration documents, and a business-class ticket to Boston. In late September, the family received this file with a scheduled visa interview for October 12. After Noman became evasive, a travel agent identified the ticket as fake. A lawyer neighbor then determined that none of the documents in the file were genuine. Ijaz said the family learned of the fraud around October 6. Laiba still hoped authorities might accept a genuine application.

Laiba held a degree from the International Islamic University Islamabad, where she had studied on scholarships. She taught science and tutored younger children. Her university offered her a scholarship to Saudi Arabia, but she intended to pursue education in the United States. On the day of her death, she told her father that Noman had messaged to say he would visit. She left home against her mother’s objections. Relatives located her phone via an application and found her body near their residence at approximately 3:30 p.m., less than two hours after she had gone out.

Police reported that four men on motorcycles shot Noman while officers escorted him to recover evidence. The attack remains under investigation with no arrests made. On October 21, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi handed the family more than 5 million rupees, or $18,000, which officials said was recovered from Noman. The Federal Investigation Agency noted that Noman was not a registered visa agent. An industry association stated that Pakistan does not regulate education consultancies. A senior police official said preliminary postmortem results indicated suicide, with further forensic tests pending. Ijaz continues to accuse Noman of killing his daughter.