9-member group arrested for smuggling dollars from Pakistan to Afghanistan

• Rs7.6 million, 3 million foreign currency, 36,394 dollars recovered from suspects, FIA says.
• Suspects were taking advantage of the situation in Afghanistan, FIA's investigating officer says.
• Case has been registered against suspects and further investigation is being carried out, he adds.

KARACHI: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Monday raided a currency exchange company and arrested a nine-member group for allegedly smuggling money from Pakistan to Afghanistan.

FIA Commercial Banking Circle officials said the arrests were made in Karachi's Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Saddar areas. The suspects were running an illegal hundi/hawala business under the pretext of a licensed business.

Per an FIA investigating officer, Irshaan Kareem, the arrested suspects include the company's director Mohammad Yaseen, the manager Mohammad Adnan, and other staff members who were identified as Osama, Fahad, Mohammad Athar Mehboob, Mohammad Miraj, Saifuddin, and Sanaullah.

Kareem said the FIA had also recovered mobile phones, laptops, and other documents, which were used in the illegal hundi/hawala business.

Meanwhile, Kareem added that the suspects were providing dollars to people from Balochistan without pre-requisite documentation. "The two suspects, Saifuddin and Sanaullah, arrested from the scene of crime are residents of Quetta, and used to smuggle money to Afghanistan."

The investigating officer said a total of Rs7.6 million, 3 million foreign currency, and 36,394 dollars were recovered from the suspects. He added that the suspects were taking advantage of the situation in Afghanistan and due to their actions, Pakistan's current was weakening against the dollar.

A case has been registered against the suspects and further investigation is being carried out, the FIA officer added.