Faheem Akram arrested in Lahore over alleged $126m US counterfeit postage scheme
Faheem Akram, 33, was arrested in Lahore after a weeks-long search over an alleged counterfeit postage scheme prosecutors say cost the US Postal Service more than $126 million.
Pakistani authorities have arrested Faheem Akram, 33, of Khanewal in Punjab, accused of running LabelsBank.com — an unauthorised website that allegedly sold 5.1 million counterfeit US postage labels to 5,200 customers, costing the US Postal Service more than $126 million.
The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency arrested him in Lahore on Tuesday after a weeks-long search, raiding 35 locations and questioning 47 people. Investigators traced 16 bank accounts allegedly tied to the scheme — seven Akram’s, five his brother’s, two his wife’s, and one each his sister’s and aunt’s, senior official Atif Ameer said.
The labels typically cost a flat $2 each, regardless of weight, size or destination. The $126 million figure is alleged USPS losses, not the site’s proceeds. The site ran from August 2023 to September 2026 and has been seized and shut down.
“The alleged scheme was simple but massive: sell counterfeit postage online at fixed, cut-rate prices, as little as $2 per label, regardless of a package’s weight, size, or destination, enabling customers to avoid legitimate Postal Service charges,” said US Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones of the Southern District of Florida.
A Florida federal grand jury indicted Akram in a September 28 statement: one conspiracy count, five counts of making and selling counterfeit postage, four counts of wire fraud — up to five years on the former, up to 20 years per wire fraud count if convicted. Extradition is unclear; the charges are allegations and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
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