https://arab.news/44445
- The Pakistani family was detained in the Kingdom after their luggage tag was swapped by drug traffickers at the airport
- Pakistan’s Anti-Narcotics Force detained a porter after viewing airport footage, which led to the arrest of nine suspects
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday thanked Saudi Arabia for the release of a Pakistani family that had been “framed” for smuggling narcotics to the Kingdom, the Pakistani interior ministry said.
Farhana Akram, a resident of Lahore, had traveled to Saudi Arabia with her four family members, Haroon Ali, Malik Aziz, Fouzia Aziz, and Zakria Begum, on December 23, when an international drug gang swapped Akram’s luggage tag with the help of an airport staff.
Consequently, Akram and her family members were detained in Saudi Arabia. Pakistan’s Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) investigated the case and detained a porter after viewing airport footage, which led to the arrest of nine members of the gang, including the ringleader.
The Pakistani family was released after the ANF provided evidence to Saudi authorities that they were framed by the drug traffickers, according to the Pakistani interior ministry.
“The pain the family endured is indescribable,” Naqvi said, after meeting the family along with ANF Director-General Maj. Gen. Abdul Mueed. “I extend special thanks to the Saudi government.”
The interior minister said the ANF had initiated a nationwide crackdown against smugglers, cautioning citizens to remain vigilant against individuals offering free Umrah packages as such offers could be deceitful.
Separately, Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said on Sunday it had arrested 10 persons deported from Saudi Arabia for allegedly begging in the Kingdom, despite traveling there on Umrah visas.
The trend of beggars abusing visas to beg in foreign countries has Pakistan worried that it could impact genuine visa-seekers and particularly religious pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia. According to widespread media reports, Riyadh raised this issue with Islamabad at various forums last year.
Pakistanis are the second-largest expatriate community in the Kingdom, with over 2.5 million living and working in Saudi Arabia, the top source of remittances to the South Asian country.