Pakistani authorities arrest man accused in $126m US postage fraud

Pakistani authorities have arrested a man accused of masterminding an online counterfeit operation that United States prosecutors say resulted in more than $125m of losses to the US Postal Service.

Faheem Akram, 33, was arrested on Tuesday after an expansive search operation and raids across Pakistan, a senior official at the Pakistani National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency told reporters.

Akram was indicted last month by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida, and is accused of operating a fraudulent website where he sold more than 5.1 million counterfeit stamps in the US.

The stamps, which cost about $2 each, allowed customers to ship their packages at a lower price than official postal rates, causing significant losses to the Postal Service, according to the US Attorney’s office.

The estimate of more than $124m however, represents the losses to the Postal Service and not the proceeds from the website, officials said.

Pakistani investigators discovered that Akram has been operating the website since August 2023 and used 16 bank accounts, including his own and several family members’, for the operation.

Akram has been charged with several offences, including conspiracy to defraud the US and the making and selling of fake postage stamps, as well as four counts of wire fraud, according to the US Postal Service.

He could face 20 years in prison on each count of wire fraud, as well as five years in prison for conspiracy.

Akram is currently in custody in Pakistan, but it is unclear whether he will face trial in the country or be extradited to the US.