SAHIWAL: Pakpattan Police have booked a Maldivian citizen along with three Pakpattan-based men in connection with drug trafficking and kidnapping for ransom and arrested them.

Two first information reports were registered at Faridnagar Police Station on Dec 23.

The first case (FIR No. 1113/25) was lodged under Section 365A of the Pakistan Penal Code against three local youths Bilal, Imran and Kamran on charges of kidnapping and attempting to extort ransom from Jamil Ali on Nov 16.

The second FIR No. 1115/25 was registered against Jamil Ali under Section 9-(1)6a of the Control of Narcotics Substances Act, 1997, on the complaint of Muhammad Afzal of Arifwala City Police Station for allegedly selling and trafficking drugs.

District Police Officer (DPO) Javed Chadhar said all four suspects were involved in drug trafficking and developed a dispute over the handling of drug money. He said Jamil’s Pakistani counterparts kidnapped him and detained him for 36 days at an undisclosed location, demanding $36,000 for his release.

Upon his recovery, police found heroin in Jamil’s travel bag, leading to his arrest on drug charges.

Jamil was sent on judicial remand, while the special judge of the Anti-Terrorism Court granted five-day judicial remand of the three Pakpattan suspects accused of kidnapping and extortion.

The judge directed Faridnagar police to produce them on Dec 29.

According to the police report, Jamil Ali, son of Ali Rasheed (Passport No. A41E6432), arrived in Pakistan from Maldives on Nov 10, 2025. He initially stayed at a hotel in Lahore before moving to another hotel, where he met Bilal, Kamran and Imran from Pakpattan.

Police said the men shared a common interest in drug trafficking.

On their invitation, Jamil visited Pakpattan, where he was allegedly kidnapped. The FIR states that the suspects demanded $36,000 as ransom, which Jamil refused to pay. He was kidnapped and detained at an undisclosed location. Later, he managed to flee and contacted police in Arifwala.

Acting on the information, police raided the spot and arrested the three suspects. During the search of his luggage, heroin was found, leading to registration of a case under narcotics charges.

DPO Chadhar said investigations are ongoing and expressed the hope that further facts related to drug trafficking will be uncovered. Police suspect Jamil may be linked to an international drug racket.

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2025