Organised crime: FIA arrest credit card fraud suspect

The NR3C team seized equipment and fake credit cards.


Asad Kharal March 30, 2014
The NR3C team seized equipment and fake credit cards. PHOTO: FILE

LAHORE:


The National Response Centre for Cyber Crime (NR3C) of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested a man suspected of credit card fraud.


An NR3C team arrested Mehboob Sadaqat from Allama Iqbal Town on Thursday, Punjab FIA Director Usman Anwar told The Express Tribune.

He said the raiding team led by Additional Director Azhar Mehmood and Assistant Director Jamil Ahmad Khan seized a magnetic strip reader/writer machine (MSRW), fake credit cards attributed to several banks and goods bought using the fake cards from him.

Anwar said Sadaqat was a member of an international gang involved in credit card fraud. He said he suspected that several bank employees were also part of the gang.

“Sadaqat was the leader of the gang… During interrogation he disclosed he was in contact with people involved in credit card fraud abroad,” he said.

Separately, a joint NR3C and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) team unearthed an illegal gateway exchange in Gujrat on Friday.

FIA said Kashif and Saad Saleem, found to be allegedly operating the setup, had been arrested in the raid.

Port gateways, computers, routers and thousands of SIMs had been seized in the raid, FIA said.

Two men arrested for human trafficking

The Anti Human Trafficking Circle (AHTC) of the FIA has arrested two men suspected of human trafficking in two raids.

FIA said a team led by Deputy Director Ambusher Tirmizi on Thursday raided Hafiz Jee Travel and Tours at Jalal Shopping Centre, GT Road, Shahdara, and arrested Abdul Waheed, the owner of the agency.

An FIA official told The Express Tribune that 18 passports were recovered from Waheed’s office. He said the ‘travel agent’ had been running an illegal business of sending people abroad on fake documents.

In another raid by the AHTC on Thursday, Muhammad Shahid, the owner of Karavan-i-Nafees Travel and Tours at Madni Chowk, was arrested.

FIA said five passports were recovered from him. Shahid was also running an illegal business of sending people abroad on fake documents.

Separatly, the Immigration Wing of the FIA on Friday arrested two passengers for trying to go abroad on fake visas.

FIA said Ikramul Haq and Muhammad Ilyas, residents of Khushab, were arrested by FIA’s immigration staff from the Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore, after their visas to Mozambique were found fake.

FIA said the men had been granted ‘visas’ by Muhammad Yaqoob, a resident of Mitha Tiwana, and Zakir, a resident of Karachi.

Proprietor arrested for stealing electricity

The Anti-Corruption Circle (ACC) of the FIA and the Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) on Thursday arrested a shop owner for stealing electricity.

Muhammad Ayaz, the owner Ayaz Glass Works, Lajna Chowk in Township, had allegedly tampered with his electricity meter.

FIA Director Usman Anwar told The Express Tribune that the actual loss would be determined after a technical report.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 30th, 2014.

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