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# U n ited S ta tes Co urt o f Ap p ea ls

F o rth eS e v e n th C ir cu it

N o. 08

- 1093 S A L E E M M UHA MMAD J AN, P etitio ner, v. E R I C H. H OLDER, J R
. , A tto rneyGenera l ofthe U ni ted S tat es, R es pond ent
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On Pe tition fo r Review from the B o ard o f Immigration App eals

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No . A 95 925 138

A RG UE D J UL Y 7, 2009

— D ECI DE D A UGUS T 6, 2009

Befo re P OSNER, K ANN E , a nd S YKES, C ircu it Judges. P ER C UR I AM
. Sa lee m M u h a m m e d Jan , a n at ive of P ak ista n, ente re d the Un i ted State s i n 199 9 a nd o ver sta yed hi s v i sa. W hen i m m i gr ati on o ffi ci al s i ni ti ated rem ova l proce edi ngs, J an r equeste d asyl um a n d w i thhol ding of re m ova l bas ed on hi s m em ber shi p in a parti cul arso ci al gr oup, wh i ch he desc ribes as Paki sta ni s who ar e threa tened by gov er nm ent o ffi ci al s br ibed t o settl e pr i vate2 N o. 08

- 1093 disputes

. H e a l so sought r el i efunder the Conventi on A gai nst Tor ture ( “CA T”). A n i m m i gr ati on j ud ge de n i ed hi s a pp l i cati on a nd o rder ed hi m r em ove d. The Board o f I m m i gr ati on Ap peal s co ncurr ed i n the IJ ’ s co nc l usi on and dism i sse d Ja n’s appeal

. Because the Boa rd’ s d eci si on w as su p p orted by sub stan tial evid en ce, w e d e ny J an ’s pet i ti o n. A l l o fJ an’ s t ro ubl es b eg an a ftera m aj orcusto m ero f hi s f abr i c expor ti ng busi ne ss, M usaib F abr i cs, r efused to pay f ora l ar ge shi pm ent o ff abr i c , c i ti ng poo r quali ty. M usaib, l oca ted i n K ar achi, had contr ac te d i n 199 8 t o sel l $1 m i l l i on U

. S. dol l ar s w or th of f abr i c to P re stig e A pp ar el s, l oca ted i n Qatar

. The i ni ti alshi pm ents of f abr i c pass ed i nspecti on, an d Pre sti ge’ s ba nk i n Qatar re l eas ed p aym ent t o M usaib’ s ba nks in Paki sta n after e a c h s hi pme nt
. Bu ta r o un d O c t o b e r 1 9 9 8 , a ft e r r e c e i pt ofth e fi na l s hi pme nt, Pr e s t i g e r ej e c t e d the f a b r i c a s substa nd ar d and refused to m ake furtherpaym ent. T h e fo l l owing m onth J an m et w i th the m anage m ent o f H abib Bank, one of M usaib’ s banks i n Paki sta n, to di scuss hi s o ut st an di ngde bt s to the b an ki n c o nne ct i o n wi ththe Pres ti ge tr ansact i on. A ccor ding to J an, H abib’ s m anage men tthr e a t e ne d t o u s e the i r c o nn e c t i o ns t o c o r r up t Pa k i st an i o ffi ci al s to ha ve hi m a rreste d f o r the de bt s he ow ed the ba nk

. Bu t after furt he r discu ssion, H a bib’s m an agem en t ba ck ed o ffo fthe i r e ar l i erthr ea ts a nd deci ded to join a l aw sui t that J an br ought i n Qatar ag ains t Pr es ti g e to c o l l ec t pay m en t. Jana nd Hab ib Ban k in fac t won th ei r c as e i n 1 99 9, b utt wo y ea r s l at erthe deci si on w as re ver sed by Qatar ’ s hi ghest cour t, wh i chN o. 08

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o r der ed M us aib to r efund $3 65 , 85 5 to Pr es ti g e f o r the substa nd ar d f abr i c i t s ol d. Shor tl y there after, H abib sued Jan in Pa kist a n , seeking m ore tha n $2 00,000 for M us aib’s ou ts ta n d in g d eb t fro m th e P re st ige d ea l. Aft e r P r e s t i g e s t o pp e d p a y me n tt o Mu s a ib , J a n b e c a me unabl e t o pay hi s busi ness de b ts, l eadi ng to i nd i re ct th r ea ts i ns ti g at ed by his cr edi to r s ag ains t hi m . F o r i nsta nce, so m eti m e i n f al l 1998 , one of M usaib’ s co ntra cto rs , Lati fTexti l e, fi l ed a c om pla i nt o veran un p aid bil l with Pa k i st an ’ s F ede r alI nv es ti g at i o n Age ncy ( “F I A”) , the cou nt ry’s natio n a l law enforcem en t agen cy. J an i n tu rn w as sum m oned to FI A ’ s K ar achi offi ce. A t the FI A office, J an te stifi ed, he he ar d scr eam s f orhel p and saw br uis ed and beate n peopl e be i ng l ed o u t o fo ffi ces. A ccor ding to J an, he m et w i th an FI A ag ent nam ed Bal och f orhal fan hour, duri ng wh i ch ti m e Bal och pl aced hi s r evo l vero n the t abl e a nd to l d him to pay Lati fTexti l e the $5 0, 000 he ow ed

. J an testifi ed th at he i nt erp reted Ba loch’s gestu re as a thre at. Tw o days a fterhi s m eet i ng, J an v i s i t e d L a t i fT e x t i l e s ’ s d i r e c t o r, w h o a g r e e d t o s t o p c o mpl aini ngt o the F I A a s l o nga s J ande m o ns tr at ed th athe w oul d pay offhi s debt

. Bu t the Lati fdi re cto r parte d wi ththe wor ds “I w il l se e y o u”

— an o m i nous phras e, acco rdi ng to J an, thatr efl ects a ser i ous threa t o r w ar ni ng. Th e n a t ur e a nd s c o pe o fthe F I A’ s a c t i v i t i e s we r e a dd re ss ed atJan ’s re m ov al h ea rin g b y K am ra n R izv i, a f o r m erPa k i st an i po l i ti ca l a ct i vi stno w l i vi ngi n the Uni te d S ta te s. Ri zv i ha d s er ve d a s a human- rights co nsu l ta ntt o the Pa k i st an i g o ve r nm en t f o r f o ur y ea r s an d l ate r f ounde d a non- profi t o rg ani zati on i n Paki sta n pro-4 N o. 08

- 1093

m o ting to l er an ce an d no nv i o l en ce . Ri zv i te st i fi ed th at th e FIA ru n s d et en tio n ce n te rs an d h as be en im p lic a t e d in the t or ture o fpri sone rs attho se cente rs . H e s tat ed that, because pol i ce c or rupti on i s r am pa n t, i nd i vi du al s with F I A co nnecti o ns pul l s tr i ng s byha vi nga g en ts us e i ntim idat ion or threats of d eten tion to coerce th eir ad versaries to se ttl e pr i vate di sputes. W hen ask ed w hat w oul d happ en i fa perso n cal l ed i nto the FI A offi ce did not com ply, Ri zv i r esp onded that the ag ent c oul d place that perso n i n a dete nti on ce nteran d o rd erbea ti ngs o r tor ture
. Wi tho ute xp l a na t i o n, R i z v i we nto n t o s a y tha t 90 p ercen t of th e pe op le call ed i nt o FI A o ffices are detai ned and that J an was l ucky to avo i d tro ubl e a fter hi s m ee tingwi thBa l o ch

. Jan ’s b u sin es s d eb ts led to an ot h er u n se tt lin g in c id en t in l a t e 1 9 9 8 , w h e n h i s f a m i l y m e m b e r s w e r e a l l e g e d l y a mbus he d b y a r m ed m enwhi l e dr i vi ngi n Kar ac hi

. Acco r di ng to J an, the m en dem anded $1 2, 000 i n paym en t f or J an’ s busi ness debts and thre ate ned to k i l l hi m i fthey w er e no t pai d. J an’ s f am i l y s ubm itted and turned ov er m o ne y a nd j ewe l r y . The men’ s i den ti ti es wer e unkno wn, though J an suspect s that they work ed f orLati fTexti l es orper haps another ofM usaib’ s cr edi tor s. A nd the hara ssm ent c onti nued

. J an cl ai m s that i n the fi rs t hal fo f19 99 he r ec ei ve d thr ea te ni ngpho ne c al l s f r o m peo pl e wor k i ng f orLati fTexti l es and o th er cr edi tor s. H e s ai d that M usaib’ s cr edi tor s a l so dispat ched th ugs t o hi s ho use an d office to threate n h im and his f am ily w it h h arm unle ss he se ttl ed hi s debt s. I n M ay 1999 J an fl ed t o the Unite d Sta tes
. H e s ays he o v e r s t a y e d h i s v i s a t o a v o i d fu r th e r c o n f r o n t a t i o nsN o. 08

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w ith h is c re d ito rs in P ak ist a n . T h e follow in g m on th h is w i f e a nd chi l dren m ove d to the Unite d A rab Em irates to l i ve w i th herpare nts. S om eti m e l ate r, afterJ an had departe d Paki sta n f orthe U ni ted S tat es, t h e m anage r of H a b i b B an k w en t t o Ja n ’s h ou se in K ar ac h i an d to ld h is f athe r tha t i f J andi d no t paythe mone y he o wed t o the bank, “we w i l l se nd the ar m y peo ple to yo ur ho use an d ta ke yo u aw ay .” In 20 00 Jan ’s cou sin vis ite d h im in th e U n ite d St at es an d to ld h im th at th e FIA w as s t ill l o o k i ngf o r hi m . J ana l so po i nt s to cou ntr y r epo r ts a nd n ew s a rt icle s a s e v id en c e t h at h is c re d ito rs w ou ld bribe o ffi ci al s t o detai n, to rture, or eve n ki l l hi m upon hi s r etur n. A fter a hearing, the IJ fou nd that J an did not q ua li fy f oras yl um bec ause hi s fear o fper secuti on a ro se f ro m a purel y per sonal d ispute a nd noto n acco unt of an y g r o und pr o te ct ed by th e I N A. The IJ al so found J an i nel i gibl e f orCA T r eli efbec ause he f ai l ed to es ta b lish th at it w as m or e like ly th an n ot th at th e F IA w ou ld to rt u re h im if h e re tu rn ed to P ak ist an , esp ec ially i n the abse nce o fan y h ar m afterhi s m eet i ng with Balo ch. The Boar d ofI m m i gr ati on Ap peal s ( “BI A ”) subsequen tly d i sm i sse d Ja n’s appeal

. The BI A f ound Ja n in elig ible for a sy l u m be c au se h e fa iled to ad eq u at ely describe a p ar ti cul arso ci algr oup. A nd bec ause J an f ai l ed to sa ti sfy the st atuto ryburden requi re d fo r as y l um , the BI A co nc l ude d tha t he c o ul d no t m eetthe hi gherst and ard fo r w i thhol ding ofr em ova l

— a cl ear pr o babil ity o fpe r se cut i o n. F i na l l y , the BI A uphel d the IJ ’ s co ncl usi on th at Ja n w as not el i gibl e f orCA T re l i ef b ec au se h e h ad n ot sh o w n t h at h e w ou ld be to rt u re d if he r etur ne d t o Pa k i st an .6 N o. 08

- 1093 I n h i s pet i ti o n f o r r evi ew , J anfi r sta r g ue s th atthe B IA a n d IJ er re d i n concl ud i ng tha t he w oul d not be to rt u re d by P ak ist an i gov er n m e n t o fficia ls u p on h is re tu rn . In su p p or t, h e p oin ts t o t h e 1 99 8 a m b u sh on h is f am i l y, th e d ocum entar y e vi dence ofpol i ce c or rupti on i n P ak istan, and port i ons ofRi zvi ’ s t est i m ony. A s further evi dence thathe woul d be to rt u re d i fr etur ned to Paki sta n, J an not es hi s e ncounterwith Bal och, as wellas Paki sta n’s “s yst em ati c pro bl em ” o fpol i ce t or ture
. To r ecei ve p ro tecti on under CA T, an ind i vi du alm ust prove i t m or e l i kel y than not that he would be tort ured if he ret u rn s t o t h e c ou n tr y of re m ov al. See 8 C. F

. R. § 2 08 .16 (c ); La G uerre v. M uk a sey, 52 6 F

. 3d 1037, 10 40 (7th C ir. 2008); Prel a v. A shcroft, 39 4 F

. 3d 51 5, 519 ( 7th Ci r . 2 00 5)

. To r tu r e m us t be i nfl i ct ed byo r wi ththe c on se n t o f a p u b lic off icia l. See 8 C

. F.R. § 208.18(a)( 1); B o ci v. G o nz a les , 473 F.3d 762 , 768 (7th C ir. 2007). H er e J an di d not pro ve a l i kel i hood tha t h e w oul d be tor ture d up on r etur n by Paki sta ni go ver nm ent o ffi ci al s. The r e i s no e vi den ce tha t th e g o ve r nm en t w as b eh i nd ei therthe 1998 am bush ofJ an’ s f am i l y o r the o ther th reats m ad e a g a inst Jan at h is hom e and office. Furth er, the c o untr y r e po r t s a nd n e ws a r t i c l e s o n po l i c e c o r r up ti on i n Paki sta n ar e t oo ge nera l and vag ue to sugg est th at Jan in p ar tic u lar w ou ld fac e t or tu re . See A yele v . Ho lder, 564 F. 3d 862, 87 1 ( 7th Ci r. 20 09). The o nl y c oncr ete ex ampl e o fg o ve r nm en t i nt i m i dat i o n was Ba l o ch ’ s br an d ish in g t h e g u n in h is m ee tin g w ith Jan , bu t e ve n in th at ca s e B a loc h h ad n o fu rt h er co n ta c t w ith Jan . N or is th er e an y evid en c e th at P ak ist an i go ve rn m en t o fficia lsN o. 08

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conta cted J an o r hi s f am ily du ri ng the past ten y ear s. Thu s, the evi dence does not com pel a fi nd i ng that J an woul d b e to r tu r ed i fhe r etur ns t o Pa k i st an . J an next chal l enges the BIA’s concl usi on that he did not id en tify an ap p ro p ria te so c ial gr ou p . H e c h ar ac te riz es h is soc i algro up as “per sons thre ate ned by c or rupt o ffi ci al s o f the [ FI A ] i n Paki sta n . ” Thi s co urt has e xplai ned that “a ch ar ac te r i st i c th atde fi ne s a ‘ so ci alg r o up’ withi n the m eani ng of the i m m i gr ati on l aw s ‘ m ust b e o n e that the m em ber s o fthe grou p either cannot change, o r shoul d not be requi re d to change because i t i s fund am ental to th eir ind ivid u al id en tit ies or c on sc ie n c es .’ ” O r e j ue l a v. G o nz a les , 42 3 F. 3d 666, 672 (7th Cir

. 20 05) ( i nter nal ci tat i on om itt ed ); Lw in v

. I

. N

. S. , 144 F.3d 505 , 512 (7th C ir. 1998). J an’ s i nd ebte dn ess , how eve r, i s not an i m m utabl e char acte ris tic be c au se it is n ot inn at e o r fu n d a m en ta l to h is id en tit y. See C ruz -Fu nez v. G o nz a les , 40 6 F

. 3d 1187, 11 91- 92 ( 10th Cir. 20 05) ( “Bei ng i nd ebte d to the s am e cr edi tor ( unscrupulo us or not) i s no t the kind o fgr oup chara cter i sti c thata perso n ei thercannotchang e or should not be req uired to chan ge.”). The peti ti on f orr evi ew i s D ENI ED
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