9 suspects rounded up after FIA launches probe against predatory loan apps

The Cybercrime Wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Friday said it has arrested nine suspects and booked 19 others for allegedly blackmailing citizens through loan-giving mobile applications (apps). The development comes a day after the agency launched an investigation into the death of a man in Rawalpindi — who purportedly ended his life — due to “threats” made by loan apps over his failure to repay the ballooning interest on his debts. A day earlier, the FIA team raided two offices of the loan app in G-8 sector, sealed the offices and confiscated laptops and other material. In a statement issued today, an FIA spokesperson said the cybercrime cell, along with the financial services, conducted raids in several areas of Rawalpindi during which nine suspects were held and first information reports were registered against 19. “Inspector Badar Munir sealed a number of offices inside a plaza located on the Saidu Sharif road,” it said in a statement.