FIA Busts Network Smuggling Afghan Nationals on Fake CNICs

The Federal Investigation Agency's Counter Terrorism Wing has dismantled a criminal network involved in facilitating the illegal movement of Afghan nationals abroad using fraudulently obtained Pakistani Computerised National Identity Cards, uncovering a financial operation valued at Rs32.9 million. The operation exposes a sophisticated document fraud and human smuggling nexus that exploited identity verification gaps to move individuals across international borders.

Authorities say the network operated by procuring or forging CNICs in the names of Afghan nationals who would then be positioned as Pakistani citizens to circumvent standard emigration screening. The Rs32.9 million figure reflects the scale of transactional proceeds identified during the investigation, pointing to a commercially organised smuggling enterprise rather than isolated individual offences.

The CTW bust is part of a broader FIA crackdown on illegal emigration facilitation networks, which have proliferated amid restrictions on regular migration channels and elevated demand for overseas employment. Pakistani authorities have come under pressure to tighten identity document integrity as forged CNICs continue to surface in immigration enforcement actions both domestically and abroad.

Suspects have been taken into custody and cases registered under relevant provisions of immigration and document fraud law. The FIA has indicated that further arrests are expected as investigators trace the full operational network, including document suppliers, travel facilitators, and financial intermediaries involved in the scheme.