Counterterrorism and financial crime unit of the CID found nearly 3,000 SIM cards and a SIM activator during the raid. PHOTO: FILE
The Crime Investigation Department (CID) arrested two employees of a private telecommunications company and two retailers on Friday for selling pre-activated cellphone SIMs in district South.
The counterterrorism and financial crime unit of the CID also found nearly 3,000 SIM cards and a mobile phone SIM activator during the raid. The arrested employees were identified as Murtaza Abbas, an area retail manager, and Muhammad Amir, an area development officer of the same company. The retailers were Noman and Alauddin. An FIR No. 26/13 was registered.
Such pre-activated SIM cards are being used in bomb blasts, target killings, kidnappings, extortion and even bomb rumours. The bomb blast at the Ashura procession on MA Jinnah Road in 2009 also took place through a fake SIM.
“We can curb terrorism and crime, especially major ones, by more than 90 per cent if we are able to prevent these SIM cards,” hoped the unit’s in-charge, Raja Omer Khatab. “These suspects also provided these SIMs to other parts of the country, including Multan, Nawabshah and Lahore.”
The suspects were later handed over to the Cyber Crime Circle of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). “Some senior officials of the telecom company are also found involved in this criminal act,” FIA’s investigating officer, Habibur Rehman, told The Express Tribune. “But investigations are underway against the high-ups of the company.”
According to the arrested employees, the special mobile phone SIM activators were only available to the telecom companies, who later gave them to their dealers to increase sales. “Bosses only give instructions and then the ball is in our court as we have been tasked to increase sales,” said one of the employees. “Everyone wants a SIM card on fake identity. This is Pakistan and no one can stop these things permanently.”
Meanwhile, a representative of the telecom company told The Express Tribune, on the condition of anonymity, that there are more than 50 per cent SIM cards registered on fake identities. “Earlier, the retailers issued the SIMs by obtaining CNICs from the banks but now they are using voters lists,” he said, explaining that the voters list carries the mother’s name which is necessary to activate a SIM.
For their part, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) will make sure only designated franchises of telecom companies are authorised to sell SIM cards. A PTA official said people should call 668 and block the SIMs if they find someone else is using their identity.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2013.
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