BAHAWALPUR / BAHAWALNAGAR: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) claims to have unearthed a gang involved in preparation of counterfeit currency and recovered notes worth thousands of rupees from their possession.

FIA (Bahawalpur division) Deputy Director Sarfraz Ali told Dawn on Wednesday that a team on a tip-off raided a place at Bahawalnagar’s Dunga Bunga area and arrested Bilal Hanif, a resident of Lahore, Haji Mujeebur Rehman and Muhammad Ahmed, both hailing from Bahawalpur.

He said counterfeit currency notes worth thousands of rupees of different denominations were recovered from them.

Further investigation was under way, as were efforts to arrest the remaining accomplices, Mr Ali said. He said the FIA police station registered a case 204/21 under sections 489, 406, 420 and 109 of PPC.

The FIA team also seized machinery used in the crime, according to a spokesperson. He said a team first arrested ringleader Sohail Shehzad with a large quantity of counterfeit foreign and Pakistani currency notes on Dec 6 last.

He said that during investigation, Shehzad pointed out one of his accomplices Bilal Hanif who was caught red-handed with fake currency notes on Bahawli Road.

He said after getting important information from Bilal, three special teams were constituted on the instructions of FIA Punjab Zone 2 Director Syed Farid Ali Shah to catch the remaining members of the gang.

He said the teams, under the supervision of Sub-Inspector Bashir Khan, conducted a raid at Maharwali, Dunga Bunga at the house of Mujeebur Rehman and confiscated machines and a currency notes including US dollars.

Team in-charge SI Bashir Khan told Dawn that the team including Abdur Rauf and Mussarat Ayub first purchased fake Pakistani currency from Mujeeb in guise of customers and then raided his hideout with the help of police and Elite Force personnel. Mr Khan revealed that Mujeeb was the prime suspect and he had been operating fake currency racket for almost 18 years in the area and was also involved in money laundering.

Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2021