Top NCCIA Officials in Rs120m Extortion Scandal

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) Anti-Corruption Circle has registered a case against senior officers of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for their alleged involvement in a large-scale extortion racket linked to illegal call centres.

According to the FIR lodged in Islamabad, several NCCIA officers—including additional directors from the Rawalpindi office—are accused of receiving millions of rupees in extortion payments from at least 15 illegal call centres operating in Islamabad’s F-11 sector. The case also names a frontman and a foreign national allegedly involved in facilitating the illicit transactions.

The report stated that the call centres had been paying hefty sums—estimated at Rs15 million monthly—to NCCIA officers in exchange for protection from raids and arrests. “The officers were receiving millions of rupees monthly from these call centres,” the FIR read.

The investigation further revealed that a woman allegedly paid Rs8 million to secure the release of her husband, a foreign national, who was among 14 individuals detained during a raid on a call centre in Rawalpindi. FIA sources said the woman’s husband was subjected to torture, and a video of the act was sent to her before she made the payment.

An additional Rs12 million was reportedly received for the release of 13 other foreign detainees, while another Rs1 million was charged under the guise of completing legal formalities. Officials said the total Rs21 million collected from the detainees was distributed among the involved officers.

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FIA sources disclosed that the extortion network generated roughly Rs120 million between September 2024 and April 2025. The payments were allegedly collected through a frontman working under the supervision of an NCCIA additional director. In one instance, a sub-inspector reportedly negotiated a deal worth Rs800,000 per month with a newly established call centre.

The alleged racket persisted even after a new team was posted to the NCCIA Rawalpindi office in May 2025. The fresh team reportedly continued collecting Rs15 million in monthly “protection” payments, with a sub-inspector appointing his clerk as a frontman to handle the transactions.

In a separate case, sources said a Rs40 million “settlement” was reached with a station house officer (SHO) after a raid on another illegal call centre in Islamabad’s F-11 sector.

The revelations follow the recent arrest of six NCCIA officials in Lahore for allegedly taking Rs9 million in bribes from the wife of YouTuber Saadur Rehman, popularly known as Ducky Bhai. The YouTuber was arrested in August at Lahore airport by NCCIA officials for allegedly promoting online gambling and betting platforms such as Binomo and 1xBet on his YouTube channel.

Authorities said further investigations are underway to identify additional officials and intermediaries involved in the extortion network.