LAHORE   -   The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) yesterday arrested eight Chinese nationals and four Pakistanis allegedly involved in trafficking Pakistani girls to China by contracting fake marriages and using them as sex workers for a prostitution ring.

Chinese nationals were arrested in an FIA raid at a private housing society - Divine Homes - near Lahore airport.

The Chinese nationals were identified as Wang Hao, Shui Sheli, Wang Yezho, Chang Shel Roy, Pan Khowajay, Wang Bao, Zoathi and a woman named Ken Dis.

They were involved in marrying Pakistani girls with the help of local agents and later using them for prostitution in China as sex workers.

Four Pakistanis - Kahsif Nawaz, Kaisar, Ismaeel and Zahid Masih - facilitating the fake marriages as local agents were also apprehended.

Accordion to Deputy Director FIA Jamil Ahmad Khan Mayo, the raid was carried out as part of ongoing drive against foreigners involved in illegal activities. According to FIA, the suspects in connivance with locals lured the innocent girls, contracted marriages and took them to China where the victims were forced for prostitution. 

FIA said that crackdown was launched as the incidents of the phony marriages between the Chinese man and Pakistani girls surfaced in high number in recent months.

FIA spokesperson said that the owner of the gang involved in fake marriages contracts was a son of the Punjab police’s officer and when FIA raided the culprit fled away. The culprit has already taken a bail till May 13 from the courts,” FIA said.    

It is pertinent to mention that in February a Chinese national was apprehended at Islamabad International Airport for allegedly trafficking a Pakistani woman. In a separate incident on May 1st, FIA also nabbed a Chinese national in Faisalabad for illegally contracting a marriage with a Pakistani girl.

Due to increase in number of phony marriage incidents reported in local media, the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad also responded on April 13 on the reports.

The Embassy said the illegal marriage business is strictly prohibited under Chinese law and expressed their resolve to cooperation with Pakistani authorities against such illegal practices.

“We notice that recently some unlawful matchmaking centres made illegal profits from brokering cross-national marriages. Both Chinese and Pakistani youths are victims of these illegal agents. Chinese laws and regulations strictly prohibit cross-national matchmaking centres,” the statement said.