KARACHI: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested a seven-member human smuggling gang during a successful raid in North Nazimabad, uncovering a well-organized network allegedly involved in visa fraud and illegal overseas employment scams for the past five years.
The operation was carried out by the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Karachi on the directives of the Director FIA Karachi Zone. According to the FIA, the suspects had established offices under different names across various areas of Karachi, where they lured citizens with false promises of sending them to Europe for employment.
Investigators said the gang operated from a rented building that served as its main office for conducting illegal activities. During the raid, FIA officials recovered hundreds of Pakistani passports, sophisticated weapons, police uniforms, laptops, and other crucial evidence.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects charged victims between Rs 800,000 and Rs 1 million per person for arranging overseas jobs and visas. However, instead of providing visas, they allegedly delayed applicants through false promises and deceptive tactics.
The FIA further disclosed that whenever victims demanded their visas or requested refunds, accomplices wearing fake police uniforms allegedly threatened and harassed them to silence complaints.
So far, 52 victims have come forward, while investigators continue to identify additional victims and collect further evidence. Initial findings suggest the organized network had been involved in human smuggling and financial fraud for nearly five years.
The FIA has expanded its investigation to trace additional facilitators linked to the network and is also examining the group’s financial transactions to uncover the full extent of the operation.
Disclaimer: This news report is based on information released by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and reflects the details available at the time of publication. The accompanying image is AI-generated and is intended solely for illustrative purposes.
