FIA probes suicide of man blackmailed by predatory loan app

Investigators interview family, to send victim’s phone for forensic analysis

RAWALPINDI:

Investigators of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Wednesday visited the residence of the 42-year-old man who died by suicide at his residence in Rawalpindi a day earlier to collect evidence and interview the family.

Sources within the FIA said that investigators had taken into custody a voice message sent by Muhammad Masood to his wife before taking his own life. In it, he mentioned the pressure to pay the interest and loan amount as he was being threatened and blackmailed by personnel of the online loan app.

The three-member FIA team also took the mobile phone of the victim and also reviewed his emails, including the correspondence with the digital lender. They also recorded the statements of the deceased's wife and brother.

The team of the Rawalpindi Cybercrime Circle comprised Station House Officer (SHO) Badar Shehzad, Inspector Owais and Chaudhry Rauf.

Read more: Man driven to suicide by predatory lending app, says family

The team also obtained details of the representatives of the online loan apps. The FIA team also collected details of the mobile numbers used to threaten the victim. They also took details of payments received from and delivered to the digital lender.

FIA sources added that Masood's phone would be sent for a forensic review to collect concrete evidence.

Masood had initially taken a loan from an online app, which was offered without a markup. However, the conditions included penalties and the amount soon ballooned to Rs70,000. It forced him to take another loan, from a different app, and he ended in a debt trap with the amount owed reaching Rs1 million, sources within FIA revealed.