ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested two human smugglers from the eastern province of Punjab, the agency said on Sunday, as part of an ongoing nationwide crackdown to dismantle trafficking networks and curb illegal migration.
Islamabad has intensified its crackdown on human trafficking networks after multiple boat tragedies resulted in its citizens getting killed in recent years. This week, crew members of humanitarian rescue ship Ocean Viking rescued Pakistanis among 44 migrants off Libya’s coast.
The FIA said it had conducted raids in Punjab’s Okara and Mianwali districts and arrested two suspects involved in visa fraud and human smuggling, who had swindled a few individuals out of Rs1.15 million ($4,142) on pretext of sending them to Oman.
“The suspects had gone into hiding after receiving money from citizens,” the agency said in a statement. “An investigation has been launched after the arrest of the suspects.”
Several Pakistanis attempt the dangerous and illegal journey each year in a bid to escape surging inflation and opt for a better life as the cash-strapped country navigates a tricky path to economic recovery from a macroeconomic crisis.
