Cross-border crime: FIA arrests human trafficker

Rahman confesses that he and an accomplice were involved.

LAHORE:

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested a man suspected of smuggling. FIA Director Usman Anwar said the agency had been tracking Ziaur Rahman and arrested him from the airport.

He said Rahman had confessed that he and an accomplice identified as Aneeq Ahamd sent several people to Canada via Kyrgyzstan for $15,000 fee each. He said the FIA Immigration staffers at Allama Iqbal International Airport recovered seven fake educational certificates, 23 receipts of money changers, diaries containing logs of the money taken and the people trafficked.

Meanwhile, the FIA Immigration staff offloaded two passengers trying to leave the country despite being on the exit control list (ECL). Khurram Khaliq tried to travel to Dubai via flight PA-410 but was arrested upon checking in at the airport. Another passenger, Aalya Mumtaz was also offloaded while she trying to travel London via Flight EK625.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 28^th, 2014.