GUJRAT: The special judge (central), Gujranwala, on Thursday handed down a 17-year rigorous imprisonment, besides a fine of Rs1.1 million, each, to two human traffickers.

According to the prosecution, the convicts Hamza Ashraf and Arslan along with two others, were booked in a case (595/2025) on the charges of receiving a sum of Rs3.8 million from the complainant, for sending his brother-in-law to Europe.

However, the complainant`s brother-in-law was sent to Turkiye, where he was forcibly kept in a safe house and was also subjected to severe physical torture. The victim has been missing since then.

The two other suspects in the case Sufiyan and Qasim are at large.

The case was lodged by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Gujranwala circle after the arrest of the two convicts.

The judge awarded a three-year imprisonment and Rs300,000 fine each to both convicts under Section 17 of the Immigration Ordinance 1979, as well as a seven-year term and Rs500,000 fine each under Section 22 of the same ordinance. They were also handed down a seven-year term and Rs 300,000 fine each under Section 6 of the Prevention of Smuggling of Migrants Act 2018.

The judge also announced a six-year additional imprisonment for the convicts in case of non-payment of the fine amount.

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