FIA Karachi busts ring involved in smuggling newborns abroad

KARACHI: Incoherent answers by a woman during immigration screening at Karachi Airport helped the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) unearth a well-organised child trafficking ring involved in smuggling ‘illegitimate newborns’, officials told HUM News English.

Initial findings confirmed the existence of a network engaged in abducting or illegally obtaining children, forging identities, and smuggling them abroad for monetary gains, a senior FIA official said.

The network, which also included midwives, used a WhatsApp group to circulate information about newborns. This data was filtered and forwarded to potential buyers, the official added.

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“This particular child was born out of wedlock and had been obtained by a midwife from the mother in the Banaras area of Karachi,” the official said, adding that at least half a dozen children had either been trafficked or sold for adoption by the ring.

Last month, a woman named Kiran was intercepted at the Karachi Airport while attempting to travel to Mozambique with a minor named Zayaan.

When Kiran gave unsatisfactory responses during the immigration process, she was offloaded and interrogated. During questioning, she revealed that Zayaan was not her biological son. A First Information Report (FIR) was subsequently registered.

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Kiran disclosed that another woman, Yasmeen, had handed her the child, assuring her that forged documents would be prepared showing Zayaan as her biological son.

Kiran was promised financial compensation and was instructed to hand the child over to a man named Sohail upon arrival in Mozambique.

“Yasmeen, prior to her arrest, was known for her involvement in social work and held a position on the Social Welfare Board of a religious institution in Garden East, Karachi.

She was socially well-connected and trusted in her community,” the FIR (No. 191/2025) stated.

Upon her arrest, Yasmeen confessed to receiving the child from Dr Lubna, acting on instructions from a woman named Hameeda, alias ‘Major Maa’, currently residing in Canada.

Yasmeen further admitted that she had temporarily placed the child with her domestic helper, Laxmi, and Laxmi’s husband, Mukesh, who cared for the child at their home. They were paid Rs25,000 per month until the forged documents were arranged.

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“It was revealed that Hameeda — formerly known as ‘Captain’ and later ‘Major’ at the religious institution — had a longstanding partnership with Yasmeen. She had reportedly been involved in child trafficking before relocating to Canada,” the FIR stated.

The fake birth certificate for Zayaan was issued by Dr Mumtaz Nayani, who has also been arrested. She confessed to forging the document at Hameeda’s request and admitted to doing so in several past cases.

Investigations confirmed that all expenses for the operation — including visa fees, expedited passport processing, NADRA CNIC creation, daily child care costs, and the caretaker’s salary — were financed by Sohail, a resident of Mozambique. The funds were routed through Yasmeen.

After multiple raids, Dr Lubna was arrested on June 11, 2025. Interrogations revealed she is a government officer serving as a Resident Medical Officer (RMO), BPS-17, at Sindh Government Hospital, Nazimabad, since her appointment in 2024.

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She also runs an NGO named Nayab Welfare Human Health Care Orphanage Association, registered under No. PSW-1772 since 2014. Authorities said she has been involved in trafficking children to various countries under the guise of welfare activities.