20,000 Pound seized from seven PIA crew members in joint operation

LONDON: Scotland Yard has confirmed that officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command (SO15) and the Border Force were involved in the stop, search and investigation of 7 crew members of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
Speaking to Geo News, a Scotland Yard spokesman revealed that “approximately £20,000 in cash” were seized by the officers from the PIA crew members, who were stopped and searched on Sunday 7 June 2015 at the Heathrow airport. The crew members were about to fly from London Heathrow to Karachi when the officers, acting on intelligence, swooped on the flight to examine seven people.
The spokesman said that it was a joint operation between the two forces. Those who were stopped and examined included four women (aged between 31 and 44 years) and three men (aged between 31 and 36 years] under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000”.
The spokesman told this correspondent that the PIA crew members were “subsequently released in the early hours of Monday, 8 June 2015” and “enquiries continue”.Under Schedule 7 Port and Border Controls of the Terrorism Act 2000 a person may be detained and questioned for up to six hours to determine if that individual is a person concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism as outlined in the Act.
As with any power to detain an individual it is used appropriately and proportionately and is subject to scrutiny by the Independent Reviewer of UK anti-terror laws. The PIA aircraft on Sunday night flew to Karachi with a crew comprising only seven members, which is below the required number per international flight safety standards.
Geo News understands that the police are investigating into the origin of the money in order to determine that the crew members were not involved in money-laundering. According to the UK law, any amount in cash equivalent to GBP 8,500 or €10,000 must be declared and source must be explained. The rule applies when this money is being brought to the UK, taken between the UK and any non-European Union (EU) country. Anyone carrying cash over €10,000 must fill in form C9011. Anyone found to be in violation of this law could face penalty up to £5,000. The declared cash can be seized by customs officers if they have reasonable grounds to suspect a crime. They can keep the cash for 48 hours - after that they need a court order.
In the case of the seven PIA crew members, the seized amount falls within the limits of the amount that can be carried but the authorities have the right to ask questions about the source of the cash. They have the right to seize the amount. A police source told Geo News that the amount seized by the authorities from the PIA crew members is being investigated and will not be given back to the PIA crew members unless they provide reasonable explanation of the source and origin of the money.

Online adds: Meanwhile, five crew members of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) were sacked over serious breach of laws in England.The sacked crew members included Sadia Butt, Fareeha Mumtaz, flight steward Ahad Khan, flight attendant Awais Ahmed Qureshi and Touseef Ashraf.
According to PIA spokesperson, all the 5 members have reached Pakistan.All crew members and aircraft of PIA will be scrutinised strictly in England from now onwards, according to sources.