A woman bound for Saudi Arabia on a religious visa was being sent abroad for sexual exploitation — her testimony has cracked open an organized network with links across borders
By Imran Malik | MediaBites.com.pk
A Federal Investigation Agency operation at Multan Airport has exposed an organized network using Umrah visas as cover to traffic Pakistani women abroad for sexual exploitation, the FIA announced on Sunday.
The breakthrough came when immigration officials intercepted Anisha Bibi, a woman attempting to board flight SV 801 from Multan to Saudi Arabia. During routine clearance checks, her travel record raised suspicion, and she was pulled aside for questioning.
What she revealed led investigators to an operation far larger than a single traveler.
How the Network Operated
Anisha Bibi told FIA officers that a structured network had arranged her visa, her travel documents and her passage — all under the cover of Umrah — for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation abroad.
Acting on her disclosure, FIA arrested agent Mohammad Amjad, who had arranged her travel. Examination of the woman’s mobile phone, her communications and other digital evidence confirmed what she had described — the network was real, organized and active.
According to FIA, the network’s ringleader was operating from Saudi Arabia, while a local agent based there coordinated the logistics of sending passengers through Umrah visa channels. The entire pipeline — from visa procurement to travel arrangements — was designed to evade detection.
The Investigation Widens
FIA has expanded its investigation to identify all individuals connected to the network. Authorities confirmed they are monitoring the future travel of suspects to prevent them from attempting to leave Pakistan through alternative routes.
A FIA officer at Multan Airport, speaking on condition of anonymity, explained the agency’s screening process: “At every FIA airport counter, the details of outbound passengers are checked. When the tracking system flags someone as suspicious, we conduct a verbal interview based on their documents — comparing their financial profile and travel history against the stated purpose of the journey, such as Umrah.”
That process caught Anisha Bibi. Her testimony then gave investigators the thread to pull.
A Wider Pattern Across Pakistan
This case is not an isolated incident. FIA records show that in the past year alone, the Anti-Human Smuggling Circle in Karachi arrested more than 410 suspects and registered 144 cases involving illegal activity abroad — including begging and exploitation carried out under the cover of Umrah visas.
Similar operations are underway at airports in Islamabad, Lahore, Multan and Sialkot, where hundreds of suspicious travelers have been arrested or offloaded over the past twelve months.
Agha Tariq Siraj, former Chairman of the Travel Agents Association of Pakistan, described the broader context: “This is not only about Umrah. There are Pakistanis who go there and disappear, or are caught begging. This problem largely originates from areas beyond Multan.”
He added that travel agents themselves now refuse to process visas for suspicious applicants: “If someone is caught in another country, the sending travel agent also faces consequences. So we decline when something does not feel right.”
Government Crackdown Continues
The Government of Pakistan has ongoing crackdown operations targeting individuals attempting to travel abroad — particularly to Arab countries — for illegal or suspicious purposes. The Multan Airport case is the latest in a series of interdictions that have expanded significantly over the past year as the FIA strengthens its airport screening capabilities.
Investigations into the Multan network are continuing.
Source: FIA Multan spokesperson | MediaBites.com.pk
