MIRPUR: In Mirpur, a press conference was held at the Kashmir Press Club where young Pakistani girls revealed how they became victims of a traumatic marriage scam by British Pakistani men who threatened them with blackmail after shooting first-night wedding videos featuring intimacy.

Mirpur is dubbed as ‘Little England’ due to the huge influence and heritage of British Pakistanis from this region.

Many of the girls from areas like Mirpur in Pakistan are being easily wooed by British nationals to marry and live a better life abroad. The families of these girls are more than willing to marry their daughters hoping to give them a better future.

Sadly, there are scrupulous men who take advantage of the vulnerability of such girls. An example being this British Pakistani gang of men.

The lead man of the gang known as Mumtaz aka ‘Taja Pehlwan’, is said to be from Halifax in West Yorkshire, UK. He also has residency in New Abadi Sangoot, Mirpur, Pakistan.

It was in Mirpur where Mumtaz developed relationships with the girl victims and eventually convinced them to marry him after alluring them to have a ‘dream life’ with him in the UK.

Each of the girls was trapped at different times by Mumtaz without the others knowing he had done the same to the victims.

Mumtaz ‘Taja Pehlwan’ married seven women in total in this way. They included Asma, Mumtaz Begum and Misbah, all residents of Mandi Bahauddin; Tahira, from Sanoogt, Mirpur and Maria who is from sector F-2 Mirpur.

It was revealed by the victims at the press conference that Mumtaz spearheaded a drug-dealing gang. Members of the gang also included two of his nephews from the UK. Namely, Muhammad Ali and Anzar Ali, who are the sons of Waliyat Hussain.

The girls stated that they were forced and used by the men to participate in the illegal activities of this drug gang.

Mumtaz’s nephews also married a number of the girls.

Muhammad Ali married three of them including Bushra Bibi from Kharak and Kiran Mehmood who lives in Khaliqabad, Pakistan.

His brother, Anzar Ali married five of the victims. Namely, Nazreen Bibi from Sangoot, Mirpur, Sonia from Jatlan and Rifat, Arooj and Nabeela who were actually from the UK.

Another five girls were also conned into marriage by two other members of this family and gang.

Ansar Bashir married Sumaira and Nazia, whilst Muhammad Bashir wed Mahnoor, Naeema and Naheeda.

In total, the British Pakistan men married about 15 young women and these wives were then targeted by blackmail to keep them silent.

Intimate videos of their wedding nights were filmed by the men and the girls were constantly threatened that these would be released online.

The videos would have huge implications for the victims so they did as they were told and kept quiet.

The victims told media at the press conference that this British Pakistani family gang bribed them with a life in the UK by marriage but never ever took them.

Also, the men would not divorce them either, keeping them as multiple ‘wives’, and if anyone did attempt to seek a divorce or tried to leave a marriage, they would have false cases of theft and stealing filed against them. Giving them very or little chance to escape this life of misery and blackmail.

But when the girls finally broke out of the spiral of fear, they managed to find help. The press conference was held to reveal everything that took place and what they endured through this horrific ordeal.

The men cannot be traced and have not been found further to the evidence presented by the victims of this traitorous crime.

The young women expressed their anger and danger of such sham marriages and told any parents watching to be very vigilant and careful if they are thinking about marrying their daughters abroad, especially in the UK.