Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI:
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested 257 people in December for trying to travel illegally to Iran by sea route, as authorities stepped up a crackdown on human trafficking and illegal border crossings.
According to an FIA spokesperson, the arrests were made by the agency’s Composite Circle Gwadar during a series of intensified operations targeting illegal maritime movements. The suspects were intercepted while trying to leave Pakistan through the coastal belt without valid travel documents.
The arrested people belong to various districts of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Among them are 34 foreign nationals, including 30 Afghan citizens, two Bangladeshis and two Iranians, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the suspects were apprehended in Jiwani, where they were preparing to illegally enter Iran by sea. Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects planned to use Iran as a transit point to travel to other countries through illegal means.
Among the arrested Pakistani nationals, 142 belong to Punjab, 63 to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 12 to Sindh, while the remaining suspects are from Balochistan, according to FIA officials.
They said cases had been registered against those arrested and further investigations were underway to identify the facilitators, handlers and networks involved in human trafficking and illegal border crossing.
The FIA said the nationwide crackdown on human traffickers and those involved in illegal cross-border movements continued, adding that all available resources were being used to arrest those facilitating such activities.
