NCCIA busts bust exploitation networks, makes 1,000+ arrests

The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has launched Pakistan's largest-ever crackdown on online child exploitation, dismantling multiple

The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has launched Pakistan’s largest-ever crackdown on online child exploitation, dismantling multiple international networks involved in child pornography, dark web trading, and blackmail, with major arrests in Islamabad, Karachi, Skardu, Lahore and Multan.

In the most shocking revelation, described by officials as the first case of its kind in Pakistan’s history, a biological father was found directly involved in the heinous crime against his own minor children.

Addressing a press conference today, NCCIA Islamabad Circle Additional Director Muhammad Shoaib Khan revealed that the agency had fully dismantled a dark international child pornography network.

According to the Additional Director, the suspect allegedly produced obscene videos of his 4 to 5-year-old children and used them for blackmail and illicit trade at national and international levels. Investigators found that the videos were uploaded to highly secret Telegram groups, where they were traded using cryptocurrency.

Officials said the recovered videos not only targeted innocent children but also contained scenes of brutal violence and abuse against animals.

The alleged ringleader was arrested from Skardu following timely intelligence and technical assistance from international agencies. Important digital links and evidence were also collected from Islamabad, Multan and various areas of southern Punjab, while raids are being conducted to arrest remaining facilitators.

In a second case revealed in the same press conference, a minor girl from Karachi was continuously harassed and blackmailed for 2-3 years. Distressed by blackmail, the girl attempted suicide and is currently in the intensive care unit of a hospital.

Khan said the NCCIA Cyber Crime Response Team acted swiftly on the family’s complaint and traced and arrested the main suspect in Islamabad within just 13 hours with the help of modern technology.

In a parallel operation led by Deputy Director Shahzad Akbar, NCCIA Karachi arrested 42 people after a major raid at Rabia City, Gulistan-e-Johar, on three companies – Arts Design, Pixel Craft and Art Office.

The companies allegedly converted videos involving children into animated content and sold it to clients in the USA and Germany. A total of 45 mobile phones were seized. Investigators said the network operated through organized teams of online agents who created fictitious female identities on Instagram and X to attract foreign clients.

According to officials, 12 children were targeted through the dark web and were being paid Rs6,000 in exchange for $100. Officials also confirmed the use of Artificial Intelligence to target minors.

A Karachi court on Saturday remanded 13 suspects to NCCIA for a 4-day physical remand. In a related case, NCCIA also rescued a 13-year-old girl who was reportedly instructed to engage in animal cruelty and self-harm. The case was opened after information from a foreign intelligence service.

A day earlier, on Oct 24, NCCIA Islamabad arrested a 4-member gang accused of sexually exploiting dozens of children. The agency recovered 50 to 60 obscene videos of children from the mobile phone of a child.

As per NCCIA, the gang targeted children aged 6 to 14 through Instagram, befriended them by sending gifts, cash via mobile transfer, internet packages and mobile recharge, and then recorded exploitative videos by offering motorcycle and car rides. The videos were then used to blackmail victims into bringing more children and were sold internationally via WhatsApp groups.

The agency has previously secured convictions against two Chinese nationals in such cases.

Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Friday that NCCIA arrested more than 1,000 suspects across Pakistan in just 10-12 days, including over 600 in Lahore, 473 foreign nationals posing as bank representatives involved in fraud in Malaysia, China and India.

In Lahore, 39 people were arrested on Oct 7 for running an illegal call centre using AI-generated explicit images to blackmail digital loan borrowers.

Additional Director Shoaib Khan said providing immediate justice to affected families is the top priority and zero-tolerance will continue against those who harass women and children. He urged parents to monitor children’s social media activities closely.

He warned social media users to never upload immoral content, never share OTPs, bank account numbers or personal information, and to beware of fake websites. Citizens can contact the round-the-clock helpline *1799* to report any cybercrime.