KARACHI: The court of Judicial Magistrate sent Axact company owner Shoaib Shaikh and eight other accused, to jail on 14 days’ judicial remand on Monday.

Shoaib Shaikh, the CEO of IT company Axact, facing allegations of earned millions of dollars from scams involving fake degrees, non-existent online universities and manipulation of customers.

Shoaib Shaikh and other co-accused were produced in the court of judicial magistrate in Karachi today [Monday].

The court granted judicial remand of nine accused including Shaikh and ordered sending them to jail. The court also ordered Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to produce challan of the case in the next hearing.

The court will record statements of three witnesses in the next hearing of the case on June 13.

Another case against Shoaib Shaikh and others has been filed in Islamabad. The investigation agencies have arrested 17 employees of Islamabad office of Axact.

A New York Times report titled “Fake Diplomas, Real Cash: Pakistani Company Axact Reaps Millions” and written by the NYT Islamabad bureau chief Declan Walsh outlined how Axact — referred to as a “secretive Pakistani software company” — allegedly earned millions of dollars from scams involving fake degrees, non-existent online universities and manipulation of customers.

According to the report, Axact created a series of fake websites involving “professors” and students who it said were in fact paid actors.

Action against Axact kicked off after Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar ordered an inquiry into the story. FIA officers had swooped on the Karachi headquarters of the company, seizing equipment and records and expelling employees from the building.