By Dr. Ansab Ali | Lahore

LAHORE: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) Punjab has launched a major crackdown against organized cyber fraud networks involved in online financial scams, identity impersonation, social media deception, and large-scale public fraud.

Acting on the special directives of Director NCCIA Punjab Muhammad Ali Wasim, coordinated operations were conducted in Lahore and Multan, resulting in the arrest of 14 suspects—four in Lahore and ten in Multan.

During the raids, officials recovered multiple mobile phones, SIM cards, fake WhatsApp accounts, fraudulent social media profiles, and other digital evidence, all of which have been taken into custody for forensic examination.

In Lahore, NCCIA arrested Muhammad Amir, Muhammad Ashfaq, Muhammad Qamar, and Ameer Kareem in connection with three separate criminal cases. Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects allegedly posed as marriage bureau representatives and trusted acquaintances to deceive victims into transferring money. Investigators believe the accused fraudulently obtained millions of rupees through various online scams.

In three separate operations in Multan, NCCIA arrested Muhammad Asghar, Aamir Shehzad, Muhammad Kamran, Rizwan Talib, Saqib Ali, Kamran Talib, Iftikhar Manzoor, Muhammad Adnan, Muhammad Sultan, and Muhammad Naeem.

According to investigators, the suspects impersonated officials from Customs, Police, banks, and other government departments through social media platforms and WhatsApp. They allegedly targeted victims with fake prize schemes, gifts, donations, bank verification requests, and parcel clearance offers, ultimately defrauding them of substantial amounts of money.

Investigators disclosed that one victim lost PKR 1 million, while another was defrauded of PKR 588,000 in separate online scams.

NCCIA officials confirmed that the suspects were found in possession of mobile phones, SIM cards, fake WhatsApp accounts, social media accounts, and other critical digital evidence. Cases have been registered against all the accused under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, as amended in 2025, along with relevant provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code.

The agency said investigations are continuing and efforts are underway to identify and arrest additional facilitators and members of the cyber fraud networks.