Pakistani police have arrested a human trafficker for sending migrants to Libya via Qatar, according to Pakistan’s newspaper, The Nation.
The main suspect involved in human trafficking, Muhammad Saeed, was arrested by the Pakistani Police. The Pakistani authorities received complaints against four suspects involved in human trafficking. They were accused of receiving money, and pretending to provide work to two nationals in Greece.
The Punjab Police Spokesman said that the accused had received Rs 700,000 from plaintiff, Bilal Shahid to send him to Greece.
The accused sent Shahid from Karachi Airport to Libya, via Qatar. Shahid was then received in Libya, and detained for three months alongside others. His father was forced to send $5,000 dollars to secure his release.
The suspects later sent Shahid to Greece by sea. During the trip, Libyan security agencies arrested him along with other passengers, and brought him to shore.
Last month, an Italy-bound fishing trawler reportedly carrying at least 800 people — including hundreds of Pakistanis — capsized off Greece. Only 104 people are known to have survived, and the chance of finding more survivors was seen as virtually nil.
Pakistani Interior Minister, Rana Sanaullah assured that the government “would take strict action against the Greece boat tragedy, and an investigation report would be submitted within a week by duly fixing responsibility on those involved in negligence.”
He informed the National Assembly that “amendments had been proposed in certain laws to give exemplary punishment to the elements involved in the heinous crime of human smuggling, and put the lives of abroad job seekers at risk.” He said that a total of 281 Pakistani families had contacted the government to seek help, according to Reuters.
