A PIA passenger has come forward with a distressing report of a theft incident that occurred during a flight earlier this month.
The incident occurred on 5 August during PIA Flight PK-210, en route from Sharjah Airport to Sialkot International Airport. The victim had placed a substantial amount of gold, valued at 93,000 dirhams (), securely within his checked baggage.
However, upon reaching the destination in Sialkot, the passenger was disheartened to discover that the gold, which had been packed in the checked baggage, had gone missing. The passenger has alleged that the theft occurred during the handling of baggage, potentially between the stages of baggage drop-off and loading onto the flight.
The victim also promptly notified relevant authorities, including PIA, Sharjah Airport, and Sharjah Aviation. He took the initiative to communicate the issue to airport officials, with the hope of conducting a thorough internal investigation to identify the responsible parties.
Despite all the efforts, the victim has expressed frustration at the lack of responsiveness from PIA authorities. He disclosed that multiple attempts to engage with PIA through emails and reminders went unanswered, leaving him deeply disappointed with the airline’s handling of the matter.
In the pursuit of justice, the victim has shared a formal complaint with the airline and seeks to involve the expertise of Sialkot police, Customs, ASF, and Civil Aviation Authority in order to conduct a comprehensive and impartial investigation.
Speaking exclusively with ProPakistani, PIA’s spokesperson said that at the onset there are some grave rules and regulation violations in this case which is making it difficult for the authorities to substantiate the claims.
If the passenger was carrying that much amount of gold, as per procedures it has to be declared to the authorities and to the airline, but it was not done so. Rules also suggest that money and jewelry must not be kept in the check-in baggage.
Additionally, if the hand carry was checked in during boarding, the passenger did not inform the crew that it had gold in it, otherwise, they would not have sent it to the hold or would have asked to take it out and carry it in person.
Upon arrival, the gold was not declared to customs authorities which is against the rules of the country.
The passenger lifted the baggage from the belt and took it home without any hassles which is strange because normal behavior suggests people checking their valuables before taking it home.
The passenger came back after 4 hours claiming that their valuables were missing which makes it nearly impossible to substantiate that gold was indeed in the baggage or that any pilferage happened at airport areas.
It is further reiterated that at both Sharjah and Sialkot, baggage services and boarding/ disembarkation procedures are conducted by local handling agent personnel and not PIA staff.
PIA can lodge the complaint and seek investigation on behalf of the passenger, but that requires proper declarations and tracking.
Because there is no documentation of the items being transported, seeking a claim without any formal paperwork is a difficult proposition.