Forex dealers arrested to check dollar outflow

Islamabad: Pakistan's premier investigation agency has launched a crackdown on foreign exchange dealers in the wake of massive illegal outflow of US dollars from the country, officials said.

In Karachi, the financial and industrial hub of the country, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested chairman of a leading forex company for alleged illegal transfer of millions of dollars abroad, the state media reported.

The report, quoting FIA sources, said heads of some other forex companies had also been taken into custody in Karachi and Lahore for questioning.

It said the FIA had detained 10 employees of National Data Registration Authority for involvement in the scandal through issuance of bogus national identity cards.