Foreign women allege kidnapping, crypto extortion and sexual assault in Lahore

LAHORE: Two foreign women have alleged that they were kidnapped, held captive for several days, physically assaulted, sexually abused and forced to transfer thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency after being lured to Lahore under the pretext of a business meeting, according to statements recorded before a judicial magistrate.

The testimonies, recorded under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) at the Cantonment Courts on Thursday, form part of an investigation into a criminal case registered at Defence C Police Station.

Police have booked five suspects on charges including kidnapping for extortion and rape. Four of the accused — among them a close relative of a senior political figure — have been arrested and remanded into police custody for five days for further investigation.

According to the statement of the principal complainant, a Dutch national, she and her Venezuelan friend travelled to Pakistan on June 26 at the invitation of a Pakistani businessman whom they had met during a cryptocurrency conference in Singapore last year.

The woman told the magistrate that the suspect presented himself as a well-connected businessman capable of arranging meetings with influential investors for their company and facilitated their visas for the visit.

She said the two women initially stayed at a hotel in Islamabad, where they attended business presentations and visited tourist destinations, including Nathia Gali, before travelling to Lahore by road on June 29.

According to her testimony, the suspect invited them to what he described as a family birthday celebration at a residence in Lahore.

However, shortly after entering the house, four armed men allegedly stormed the premises, tied the women's hands and began physically assaulting them.

The complainant alleged that although the principal suspect initially pretended to be another victim, it soon became clear that he was acting in concert with the armed group.

She claimed the captors demanded a ransom of $2 million, threatening to kill the women and sell their organs if the money was not paid.

The women were allegedly separated and confined in different parts of the house while remaining under armed guard.

According to the Dutch national, the principal suspect and another man forcibly accessed her mobile phone and transferred approximately $17,000 worth of cryptocurrency from her digital accounts.

She further alleged that she was repeatedly forced to send voice messages to family members and friends abroad requesting urgent financial assistance.

The complainant said she managed to include a pre-arranged distress code word in one of the messages, prompting her family in Europe to alert international and Pakistani law enforcement authorities.

She also alleged that she was sexually assaulted by one of the armed suspects during her captivity.

According to her statement, on July 1 the main suspect claimed he was taking the women to the airport. However, after secretly tracking the route on a concealed mobile phone, she realised they were being driven elsewhere.

Fearing they were being moved to another undisclosed location, the women allegedly jumped from the moving vehicle after it slowed following a minor traffic collision and sought refuge at a nearby mechanic's workshop.

A traffic police officer responded to the scene and called for emergency assistance.

The complainant said the women, traumatised by their ordeal, initially fled from the first responding police vehicle out of fear before senior officers, accompanied by a female police officer, reassured them that authorities had been searching for them for nearly 48 hours.

The victims were subsequently taken to the police station, where formal statements were recorded before being presented before a judicial magistrate.

After confirming that her statement had been made voluntarily and without any coercion, the magistrate ordered it to be placed on record as part of the ongoing criminal proceedings.

The second complainant, a 40-year-old Venezuelan national, also recorded a statement before the magistrate that broadly corroborated the Dutch woman's account.

She told the court that she had also met the principal suspect at a cryptocurrency conference in Singapore and agreed to pursue a business venture with him after he claimed to have strong political connections in Pakistan.

According to her testimony, the suspect allegedly introduced himself as the son of a senior government minister and displayed photographs with a former prime minister to reinforce his credibility.

Trusting those representations, she said the women travelled to Pakistan, where they were later taken to a secluded residence and allegedly held against their will.

She claimed the suspects repeatedly questioned them about access to their computers, cryptocurrency holdings and other financial assets while threatening to kill them if their demands were not met.

The Venezuelan woman further alleged that both women were subjected to continuous intimidation and harassment during their captivity and that she was sexually assaulted by two of the suspects.

She also alleged that the captors threatened them with broken glass and warned of severe physical harm if they failed to cooperate.

The investigation remains underway, with police continuing to interrogate the arrested suspects and collect forensic and digital evidence as part of the case.