Is Ducky Bhai jailed over gambling app promotion?

LAHORE: A shocking move, the internet is flooded with news of Pakistani YouTuber Saad Ur Rehman, aka Ducky Bhai, being fined and jailed over the promotion of an online gambling app.

According to the social media users, Ducky bhai has been fined 10 million rupees and 7 years in Jail as the court has continuously denied his bail plea.

However, no official statement from the National Cyber Crime Investigation Authority (NCCIA) or court order has been provided yet; the news is entirely based on social media reports. Family and fans from all over the world are worried and praying that Ducky will come back safely.

It is important to note here that the YouTuber is behind bars as an investigation into an illegal gambling case is going on amid a nationwide crackdown by the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency.

Lahore district and sessions court dismissed the bail petition of Ducky Bhai in a case related to illegal gambling apps. The court listened to the arguments of both sides before rejecting his application.

The special prosecutor and prosecution informed the court that Ducky Bhai is a nominated suspect in the case and that a lot of evidence is present against him. The investigation, they said, started after a credible source report indicated his alleged role in advertising unlicensed forex platforms and gambling.

The authorities pointed out that there has never been any registration of any forex or gambling app by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), but Ducky Bhai purportedly utilized his YouTube account to promote those apps, asking the masses to invest in them.

The FIA also found Rs160 million in one account and Rs50 million in another, which he could not account for. The prosecutor warned that the funds “could have been used for illegal financing.”

The case against Ducky alleged that he used his YouTube channel to entice citizens into investing in the apps, causing huge financial losses. It also alleges that he was the Pakistan country manager for Binomo without the government’s authorization.

NCCIA announced that 46 applications, including Binomo, are illegal in Pakistan due to unregulated forex trading and gambling activities. The agency expressed concerns over the spread of such apps and their harm to unsuspecting investors.

The highly publicized case made the headlines across the country and initiated discussions on social media influencer responsibility and the ever-increasing menace of illegal online gambling in Pakistan.