LAHORE: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Multan Zone claimed to have arrested three suspects allegedly involved in human smuggling and visa fraud during ongoing crackdowns, while also recovering millions of rupees for victims.

The operations were carried out on the directions of FIA Director General Dr Usman Anwar and Multan Zone Director Attaur Rehman, targeting proclaimed offenders and human traffickers.

According to FIA spokesperson, teams of the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle arrested a proclaimed offender, Rashid Shabbir, from Vehari.

He was wanted in a case registered this year and is accused of defrauding a citizen of Rs400,000 on the pretext of arranging a Dubai work visa, which he failed to provide.

In a separate operation, another proclaimed offender, Ali Raza, was arrested from Lodhran. The suspect allegedly collected Rs204,000 from a victim for a Saudi visa but did not fulfil his promise.

Meanwhile, a third suspect, Naseer Ahmed, was arrested from Bahawalpur.

He was wanted in multiple cases and is accused of fraudulently obtaining over Rs1.09 million from complainants under the guise of securing employment visas for Saudi Arabia.

The spokesperson said all three suspects were under investigation.

Separately, the FIA’s Composite Circle in Bahawalpur recovered and returned significant amounts to victims of visa fraud in multiple cases. The recovered sums included Rs100,000, Rs990,000, Rs890,000, Rs350,000, Rs350,000 and Rs1.1 million in different inquiries and cases.

The victims, in video statements, expressed appreciation for the agency’s efforts in recovering their valuables and taking action against those involved in human smuggling and fraud.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2026