The Counter-Terrorism Department’s (CTD) intelligence wing on Saturday conducted an operation in Karachi against an interprovincial fraud ring.
CTD Incharge Raja Umar Khattab said two brothers who were highly wanted by various agencies and the police were arrested during the operation. Their names are Shamshad Ali Baladi, alias Imran Baloch, alias Aamir Ali Shah, and Lakhmir Baladi, alias Mukhtiar Wayo, alias Abrar Shah.
Khattab revealed that the suspects were wanted by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and police for defrauding billions of rupees from hundreds of citizens across Sindh and Punjab. He added that the arrested suspects lured citizens with offers of car loans, house loans and financing schemes.
They had set up offices under the names of ‘SG Enterprise’ and ‘Four Seasons Alliance Limited’ to lure citizens through offers of car loans, house loans and financing schemes.
The suspects’ elder brother, Nihal Baladi, was arrested by the CTD in 2022 and is currently in the Landhi Jail. It is said that Nihal, despite being in jail, managed to go to his home when left the jail for court hearings. The jail authorities had also allegedly provided him access to mobile phones and the internet.
One of the arrested suspects had adopted the pseudonym of Advocate Syed Azhar Abbas Naqvi. The CTD’s cybercrime unit had been tasked with arresting the suspects, against whom cases were registered in Karachi, Multan and Rawalpindi, and by the FIA.
NAB had previously arrested Shamshad in the Askari Group of Investments scandal case, but after being found guilty, he managed to secure a plea bargain and was released in 18 months, said Khattab.
The interior ministry had on NAB's request placed their names on the Exit Control List (ECL). The FIA had also filed a case pertaining to fraud of Rs350 million against the suspects.
The gang includes six brothers and 17 relatives and friends, with close associates like Nihal Baladi, Niaz Baladi, and Shahmir Baladi. More than 12 branch managers were involved in the fraud, each earning up to Rs100,000 in salary. The suspects would hide their real identities and open new offices, preventing victims from knowing their true names, the CTD incharge said.