Scam Call Centres Busted in Islamabad and Faisalabad Over 200 Arrested

Scam Call Centres Busted in Islamabad and Faisalabad Over 200 Arrested

ISLAMABAD — In a major crackdown on cyber fraud, law enforcement agencies raided a scam call centre operating in Islamabad’s G-10 sector, arresting more than 60 Pakistani men and women along with five foreign nationals, officials confirmed on Sunday.

Authorities also seized critical records related to the illegal activities carried out at the centre. A spokesperson for the agency stated that legal action will be taken against those who provided support, protection, and facilities to the accused individuals.

This raid comes shortly after a similar operation was conducted earlier this month in Faisalabad, where 149 individuals — including 71 foreign nationals, mostly Chinese — were arrested from another fraudulent call centre.

According to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, the Faisalabad network was engaged in Ponzi schemes and fake investment platforms, duping thousands into transferring large sums of money. The centre was exposed following a tip-off, and officials described it as a “large fraudulent network operating from Pakistan’s manufacturing hub.”

Those arrested in the Faisalabad raid included 78 Pakistanis and 48 Chinese nationals, along with others from Nigeria, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and Myanmar. Among them, 18 were women, the agency noted.

The scam involved small initial returns to victims to build trust. They were then lured into WhatsApp groups and later redirected to Telegram channels where they were asked to perform fake online investment tasks, such as subscribing to TikTok and YouTube channels, ultimately leading to larger monetary losses.

Investigations into both cases are ongoing, with authorities aiming to dismantle the wider network and bring all facilitators to justice.