Greece boat tragedy: FIA arrests two human smugglers in Gujranwala

GUJRANWALA: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has apprehended two suspects involved in the Greece boat tragedy and human smuggling in Gujranwala, ARY News reported.

According to FIA officials, Ansar Mahmood is a key member of an international human smuggling gang and was directly involved in the Greece boat incident [1).

The FIA Gujranwala zone conducted a raid and arrested the two suspects Ansar Mahmood and Muhammad Owais with Ansar being taken into custody from Narowal and Muhammad Owais from Gujranwala.

Investigations revealed that Ansar Mahmood was part of a human smuggling gang that deceived victims into paying large sums of money for illegal passage to Europe. One such victim, Ahsan Ali from Jalalpur Jattan, paid Rs 45 lac to be smuggled into Europe but tragically lost his life in the Greece boat accident.

Read more: Greece boat tragedy: Notorious smuggler among five arrested

Meanwhile, Owais was found to have cheated several individuals, including one who paid him Rs 51.37 lac for a fake job in Canada.

The FIA has initiated an investigation into the matter and is conducting raids to apprehend other suspects involved in the human smuggling gang.

Earlier, an investigation committee probing the recent Greece boat tragedy revealed the involvement of 31 officials of the FIA.

The committee decided to place the names of FIA officers, including inspectors, sub-inspectors, and constables in the Passport Control List (PCL).

According to sources, 19 FIA officers from Faisalabad Airport, three from Sialkot Airport, two from Lahore Airport, two from Islamabad Airport, and five from Quetta Airport have been implicated in the scandal.

The FIA decided to put the names of all 31 officers on the passport control list, effectively banning them from traveling abroad.