Tatiana Spottiswoode, a former Afiniti employee has testified that the founder and CEO Zia Chishti sexually assaulted her. Narrating her ordeal in front of House Judiciary Committee, the victim accused Zia of pressuring her into a sexual relationship.
Zia Chishti is a multi-billion dollar entrepreneur and CEO of Afiniti. He was awarded Sitara-e-Imtiaz by Government of Pakistan, and was part of group of Pakistani entrepreneurs that met Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during his visit to the United States. Prior to Afiniti, Zia founded two other companies – including TRG.
Afiniti is headquartered in Bermuda but employs a major share of its workforce from Pakistan, with its offices in Lahore and Karachi. Afiniti is also opening an office in Peshawar soon.
Highlights from Tatiana Spottiswoode’s Video Testimony
In a video testimony, Tatiana Spottiswoode provided horrifying details of her experience which led to serious mental health issues and PTSD, while also highlighting how arbitration clause allowed hiding of such incidents from other/future victims.
The victim claims that it all started back in December 2014, when Zia Chishti, then 43, invited her on a ski trip. She initially declined but agreed after Zia said he wanted her to meet his nephew, who was also studying Philosophy. The nephew never showed up, and she later discovered he did not exist. And the trip was just designed to groom her. Chishti expressed his feelings for her. She initially declined but then dated him and spent time with him 5 times over a period of 10 weeks. She then broke off the relationship.
Months later, Zia offered her a job. In April 2016, she signed a contract to work for Afiniti for $60k/year. The contract had a confidentiality clause.
Tatiana alleges, “during a work meeting in Dubai, Zia Chishti put his hands inside my pants and grabbed my butt in front of coworkers”. During the same trip, she says, another girl complained to Zia about his advances. The girl was sent home and was paid a settlement.
The victim says that she tried to stop Zia’s advances in every way possible. She wrote to him multiple times. Said in person, wrote in text and emails. Told him she had panic attacks. She says… “In one email in Jan 2017, I wrote: 3 times you have behaved inappropriately and with my explicit non-consent”. Reminded him “that I had said it to his face, Zia this is not consensual, I don’t want this”.
In response, she says, Chishti sent her pornographic emails describing his rape fantasies, including strangling her while having sex. Later, she went to his room where he beat her up while having sex. And when she left, he said “we should do this more often”. Following the episode, Tatiana claims that she was left with bruises on her neck, a black eye, and a bump on the head.
In May 2019, arbitrator in her case ruled that she had been sexually harassed and assaulted by Zia Chishti.
Since the ruling Zia Chishti’s lawyers at Morgan Lewis, Tatiana said, had been trying to get her to vacate arbitration award. In exchange, they would let her 1) keep the money awarded, 2) drop the lawsuit against her father, and 3) give her father $1 million. She alleged that they were probably doing this to hide the ruling from potential shareholders if/when the company goes public.
Afiniti CEO, Zia Chishti denies the claims and company issued a statement saying “Afiniti has investigated Ms Spottiswoode’s claims with independent counsel and concluded that the arbitral decision she references was erroneous.”
