The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Gujranwala Zone has intensified its ongoing crackdown against human traffickers, arresting four key suspects involved in illegally sending citizens to Europe by sea, reported 24NewsHD TV channel Monday.
According to the FIA spokesperson, the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Gujranwala carried out major operations across Gujranwala, Mandi Bahauddin, Narowal, and other adjoining areas, resulting in the arrest of suspects identified as Sanawar Abbas, Majid Gujjar, Sagar Abbas, and Munawar.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the arrested suspects were part of organised human smuggling networks. Sanawar Abbas had allegedly attempted to send a citizen to Spain via sea from Mauritania, extorting Rs 6 million in the process. The victim, however, refused to travel illegally and returned home safely.
Similarly, Sagar Abbas was accused of taking Rs 850,000 from a citizen under the pretext of arranging a job in Italy, while Munawar collected Rs 400,000 from another individual for a fake employment offer in Vietnam. Majid Gujjar was found to have received Rs 150,000 by promising to send a person to Turkey.
The FIA further stated that one of the accused had been wanted by the Composite Circle Gujrat since 2019. All four suspects reportedly failed to deliver on their promises and went into hiding after collecting large sums of money from victims.
The agency has initiated further investigations to uncover the wider network involved in these illegal activities.