PESHAWAR, Aug 17: A traffic police clerk has been arrested on charges of issuing thousands of bogus driving licences, while efforts are on to net a former cop involved in the same illegal practice, official sources told Dawn on Thursday.

In a separate case of forgery, the traffic police detained its former moharrir on charges of issuing fake fine receipts to traffic violators and causing loss to the national exchequer, these sources said.

Motor Vehicle Examiner clerk Mohammad Shafi was arrested on Wednesday while search for the former traffic clerk Hamayun was going on, these sources said.

Hamayun was terminated last year on the charges of corruption, but a senior traffic police official was appointed to thoroughly investigate the case, they said.

Both Shafi and Hamayun had issued thousands of fake driving licences and pocketed huge amounts, said a report by the inquiry officer, DSP Traffic Abdur Rauf, and an FIR registered with Gulbahar police station.

The traffic police headquarters had launched inquiry after receiving complaints of tampering with the official documents and issuance of bogus driving licences by the present and former officials, they said.

Shafi and Hamayun are charged under sections 420, 468, 471, 477-A, 464 and 465 of the Pakistan Penal Code and 409/5(2) Anti-Corruption Act.

Meanwhile, another inquiry conducted by DSP traffic Masud Aslam against crime branch clerk Niaz Ali, who during his posting as traffic moharrir, issued thousands of fake fine receipts to traffic violators.

Niaz Ali, who was posted as clerk at crime branch in the police headquarters, was detained for interrogation at the traffic police headquarters.