LAHORE: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Multan Zone on Thursday claimed to have arrested six suspects, five in alleged visa fraud and human smuggling cases, and one suspect in an electricity theft case.
According to an FIA Multan spokesperson, Muhammad Saleem, a resident of Khanewal, was arrested in Karachi on Oct 29 after being traced through the Provisional National Identification List (PNIL) and Exit Control List (ECL) in connection with a Multan FIA anti-human trafficking circle (AHTC) case.
The suspect allegedly received Rs733,000 from a complainant on the promise of arranging Umrah visas for him and his family but provided fake visas, according to the agency.
In another case, FIA Dera Ghazi Khan Composite Circle arrested proclaimed offender Muhammad Ashraf, a resident of Chiniot district, on Oct 28 in connection with an alleged Germany visa fraud case registered in 2022. The suspect and his alleged accomplices reportedly received Rs4.566 million from a resident of Layyah for arranging five German visas but failed to fulfil their promise, according to the FIA.
Meanwhile, two suspects, Muhammad Idrees and Haroon Shaukat, both residents of Lahore, were taken into custody in a case registered by FIA Multan AHTC.
The two men allegedly acted in connivance with other suspects to defraud a complainant, Muhammad Shahid, of Rs7.51 million on the pretext of arranging work visas for Belarus and Spain. The money was reportedly transferred through bank transactions, but the visas were not arranged and the amount was not returned.
In another case, FIA Multan arrested proclaimed offender Muhammad Imran, a resident of Vehari district, on Oct 27. He allegedly received Rs800,000 from a complainant on the promise of arranging a Saudi Arabian work visa but neither arranged the visa nor returned the money.
Separately, the FIA Multan Composite Circle arrested Muhammad Shahid, a resident of Kabirwala tehsil in Khanewal district, on Oct 29 after his pre-arrest bail was cancelled in an electricity theft case. According to the FIA, the suspect allegedly committed electricity theft in connivance with Jafar Hussain Tulla, a line manager at the Kabirwala city sub-division of the Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco).
Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2026
