ISLAMABAD – Another social media influencer has been arrested in Pakistan as authorities tightened noose around those promoting illegal betting and trading platforms on social sites.
Asad Nadeem Mughal has been taken into custody at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). Authorities confirm that Asad landed in Lahore from Sharjah on a private airline. But the moment his passport was scanned at immigration, his name appeared in system, leading to a swift and dramatic arrest right on the spot.
Investigators suspect Asad has close ties with Ducky, another online personality who is already in custody and facing trial over the explosive online gambling scandal that has shaken Pakistan’s digital world.
Several influencers are already booked in connection with the same betting racket, while National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) continues its full-scale investigation into how social media is being exploited for illegal betting and shady financial activities.
YouTube creator Rajab Butt has now become the latest target of this operation as NCCIA has officially registered a case against him, alleging that he too promoted gambling apps to his massive online audience.
The scandal originally exploded with arrest of Ducky Bhai, who remains behind bars as courts hear multiple cases tied to his alleged promotion of gambling platforms. Investigators are digging deeper into his role as pressure mounts on the influencer community.
And crackdown doesn’t stop there as NCCIA officially declared 46 mobile betting applications ILLEGAL across Pakistan. The banned list includes some of the world’s most popular apps: 1xBet, Chicken Road, Aviator Games, Dafabet, 22Bet, Casumo, Rabona, 10Cric, Plinko, and Bet365.
These platforms are not only pushing illegal gambling but also fuelling unregulated digital financial networks, putting Pakistani users and the economy at serious risk.
With arrests mounting, apps being blacklisted, and investigations widening, the online gambling scandal is quickly turning into one of the biggest cyber crime crackdowns in Pakistan’s history.
Which YouTubers, celebrities promoted Betting, Trading Apps in Pakistan?
