The Pakistan counter-terrorism department has arrested six facilitators of extortionists, including an Afghan national, claiming the use of 1,600 Afghan-origin SIM cards in extortion cases.

It also insisted that 90 per cent of extortionists used Afghan SIM cards to demand extortion, while the illegal forex trading method hundi-hawala was used to transfer extortion money, mostly from Karkhano market, a business hub on the border between Peshawar and Khyber districts.
 

An official said resident Mohammad Iqrar Khan filed a complaint with the CTD after receiving WhatsApp calls with an extortion demand. They said the caller identified himself as Huzaifa Qari, a representative of the TTP, demanded the payment of Rs2 million and even shared a copy of a cheque book with the name Khan inscribed on it along with details of the account to be used for the transaction.
 

DIG Shahid said his department launched an investigation that led to the arrest of Shaukat Khan and Abdullah, who named proclaimed offender Aitbar Shah alias Mehdi and his brother, Akbar Shah alias Huzaifa, as part of the extortionist gang. He added that Aitbar Shah’s cousins Waheed Shah alias Syed Qari Mehmood, Qabil Shah and Ghaffar Ali alias Salman, who lived in Afghanistan, were also members of the gang.

Background:
Karkhano is a market area on the western side of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, near the Khyber Tribal District, which in turn borders Afghanistan. Established in 1985, it has more than 4,500 shops owned by Pashtun traders. The name Kārkhānō means "industries" in the Pashto language. On the right side of the market are many industries which are actually located in the Hayatabad industrial estate. As the industries emerged in this area, so did these markets. The people in Peshawar usually visit these markets because the prices are lower than those in other commercial parts of Peshawar.
 

The market includes a large amount of contraband from smugglers.Many types of items are available, including electronics, shoes and clothing, cosmetics, toys, watches, cigars, video games. The rising price of oil actually led to a discounted price of smuggled petrol in the market.