PTI worker sent to jail for sharing Maryam Nawaz’s ‘deepfake video’

PESHAWAR – A local court on Monday sent a PTI worker to the jail on a 14-day judicial remand for sharing a ‘deepfake’ video of PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz on social media.

The culprit was identified as Fayyazuddin, a resident of Tehkal area in Peshawar city. The Cyber Crime Wing of the FIA took the suspect into custody for sharing a video clip from his Twitter account.

The FIA team produced him before Judicial Magistrate Sher Hassan and claimed that the detainee was held for uploading a ‘deepfake video’ of the PML-N leader on social media.

The agency sought two days physical custody of the suspect. However, the court turned the request down and ordered the sending of the accused to the jail on a 14-day judicial remand.

The FIR registered against the suspect read that the inquiry conducted by the FIA ‘established the accused with mala-fide intentions and ulterior motives’.

The FIA booked the accused under sections 21 and 24 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, and Section 509 of the Pakistan Penal Code.

The PTI workers staged a protest outside the Peshawar Press Club against the arrest of the suspect.

Former Peshawar district nazim Mohammad Asim Khan and PTI Peshawar city coordinator Irfan Saleem led the protesters, who shouted slogans against the PML-N-led federal government and demanded immediate release of the detainee.