LAHORE: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has busted a fake call centre in Lahore and arrested seven suspects, including three women.

According to Director Muhammad Ali Waseem, NCCIA Punjab has launched a province-wide crackdown against organised gangs allegedly involved in online investment and financial fraud.

The suspects were operating a trading call centre in Lahore, where they duped citizens through WhatsApp messages and mobile phone calls by luring them into fraudulent investment schemes, a spokesperson for NCCIA said.

During the raid, suspects Ejaz Ahmed, Muhammad Abdullah, Akhlaq Ali, Muhammad Hamza, Fiza, Samreen and Noreen were arrested and a case has been registered against them under various sections of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 and the Pakistan Penal Code.

The spokesperson further said the suspects used WhatsApp, mobile phone calls and social media platforms to contact victims, offering lucrative investment opportunities and promising high returns.

“The victims’ money was later transferred into various bank accounts and digital wallets controlled by the gang,” he said. The suspects had set up a fully operational call centre where several operators were engaged in trapping citizens in fake trading and investment schemes, the spokesperson added.

One such victim, Khurram Ashfaq, said that the suspects fraudulently obtained Rs2,779,501 from him by luring him into investing in an online trading application.

Nine mobile phones, four computer systems, 415 fake active SIM cards, 610 fake silicone thumb impressions, 56 ATM cards and 13 biometric verification devices have been recovered from the suspects.