By Mustafa Ali
ISLAMABAD, :The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has launched a series of successful operations across Pakistan to stop human trafficking, visa fraud, and illegal money transfers (hawala/hundi).Dozens of suspects have been arrested, and fake passports, forged documents, and large sums of money have been recovered.At Karachi Airport, FIA immigration officers stopped three passengers from leaving the country using fake or suspicious travel documents. The suspects were identified as Khalid Baloch, Muhammad Arif, and Amin.
Khalid and Arif were using Pakistani passports with fake work visas to travel to Qatar. Investigations showed they were originally from Iran and had obtained Pakistani passports illegally by paying Rs. 110,000 each to agents.In a separate case, an Afghan citizen named Amin was caught trying to fly to Saudi Arabia using a fake passport and protector certificate. He had entered Pakistan illegally through the Chaman border.All three suspects were handed over to the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle for further investigation.
In Multan, FIA arrested Ahmad Nazir, a wanted man who had taken Rs. 850,000 from a citizen by promising a job in Dubai but disappeared without sending the person abroad.Another suspect, Kamran Akram, was caught on Bosan Road for running an illegal hawala business and helping people travel abroad through illegal means. Authorities recovered 13 passports, laptops, phones, and other evidence from him.FIA Gujranwala arrested Muhammad Imran Butt and Wajid Ali Shah for their involvement in illegal money transfers. They were caught with Rs. 1.9 million in cash, hawala receipts, bank slips, and mobile phones.In another major case, FIA arrested four human traffickers—Muhammad Tariq, Muhammad Yameen, Muhammad Owais, and Akbar—for taking large amounts of money from people by promising jobs abroad.Tariq collected Rs. 4.5 million by offering a job in Spain and tried to send the victim to Europe via boat.Yameen took Rs. 675,000 for a job in Dubai but cut contact after the victim arrived.
Owais took over Rs. 1.25 million and sent a man to Bahrain, where he was forced into hard labor.
Akbar received more than Rs. 5 million for a job in Italy but failed to deliver and went missing.
All suspects have been arrested, and further investigations are underway to catch their accomplices.
The FIA has warned the public to avoid falling into the trap of fake agents and to use only legal and verified methods for going abroad. The agency has vowed to continue its crackdown until these criminal networks are completely dismantled.
