Hawala-hundi: ‘711 accused arrested during 499 raids in 11 months’

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has rounded up 711 accused allegedly involved in the businesses of the hawala-hundi and illegal currency exchange across Pakistan, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has stepped up its crackdown on elements involved in hawala-hundi and illegal currency exchange.

According to the FIA spokesperson, some 499 raids were conducted against the elements involved in the illegal foreign exchange and hundi during the ongoing year, in which 500 cases were registered and 711 accused were arrested.

However, the FIA teams have completed some 61 inquiries during this period. During the current year, 333 suspects were arrested in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) zone, 79 in Lahore zone, 24 in Gujranwala zone, 67 in Faisalabad zone, and 53 in the Multan zone.

Meanwhile, some 26 accused were arrested in the Islamabad zone, 77 in Karachi zone, 32 in Hyderabad zone and 20 in Balochistan zone.

Domestic and foreign currency worth more than Rs 799,060 US dollars and other foreign currency worth more than Rs 380 million was also part of it.

The recovered money also included over Rs 3.67 billion Pakistani rupees whereas, during the nationwide raids, more than 28 plazas, markets and shops were also sealed.

The support of law enforcement agencies (LEAs) was also obtained for the arrest of the accused. All the resources were being employed to ensure punitive action against the hundi and illegal currency exchange traders whereas strict punishment would be given against the elements involved in the smuggling of foreign currency, he added.