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       GUJRAT: In line with recent directions by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has initiated the process of confiscating properties of those involved in human trafficking, Dawn has learnt.

       The action, initiated under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) 2010, mainly targets those booked in human trafficking and other related cases, as well as suspects already in FIA custody.

       The AMLA gives investigation officers the power to send a reference for the seizure of a suspect’s property to the anti-money laundering cell at the directorate level, which can then initiate the process by obtaining the assent of the concerned magistrate within a few days.

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       Last week, PM Shehbaz Sharif had directed the officials concerned to expedite the prosecution process against all those involved in human smuggling effectively.

       He ordered the authorities to appoint top lawyers for prosecution in consultation with the law ministry, and assigned the Foreign Office to contact the relevant states to expedite the extradition of the Pakistanis allegedly running human trafficking operations abroad.

       Sources in the local land revenue department in various districts of Gujranwala region confirmed the confiscation of the properties in their respective districts.

       An FIA source said that initially, the properties and assets of those human traffickers involved in the recent Greek boat tragedy, would be seized in the first phase, followed by similar action against those involved in the June 2023 boat tragedy, off the Libyan coast, as these incidents had caused the deaths of dozens of illegal immigrants intending to travel towards Europe.

       Official sources explained assets were being seized in Sialkot, Gujrat, Mandi Bahauddin and Gujranwala districts, since most of the traffickers hailed from these towns of Central Punjab.

       The authorities have already identified human traffickers belonging to the Jajja network of Sialkot’s Pasrur tehsil. In Mandi Bahauddin, alleged human trafficker Ashraf Saleemi and his associates in Hellan village and other such agents were among those whose properties were marked for confiscation by the FIA.

       The FIA claimed to have arrested at least two more human traffickers involved in the recent Greece tragedy, which claimed the lives of at least 40 Pakistanis on Dec 14, 2024.

       The arrests have been made from Gujrat and Hafizabad districts by the FIA crime circle, Gujrat.

       According to a senior FIA official, the prime suspect in the human smuggling network was identified as Imran Shakoor, a resident of Bhaddar village in Kharian tehsil of Gujrat.

       The official said the suspect was successfully tracked down and apprehended after his accomplice, Zain Ali, was arrested already in the same case from Sukheki area of Hafizabad district on Saturday the last.

       Another suspected human trafficker Zafar Iqbal,a resident of Mandi Bahauddin, was arrested for allegedly extorting Rs700,000 from a man promising him to send his son to Italy for overseas employment.

       Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2025