Faheem Akram and LabelsBank: inside the alleged $126 million fake USPS label scheme
Faheem Akram, a 33-year-old from Khanewal in Pakistan, has been charged in the United States with running LabelsBank.com, a website accused of selling more than 5.1 million counterfeit US Postal Service shipping labels. American prosecutors put the loss to the postal service at over $126 million.
The case has drawn attention in both countries because of its scale, and because one website is said to have done it all at about $2 a label. This article sets out what the US government alleges, how a scheme like this works in general, and what has not been made public.
The case at a glance
| Accused | Faheem Akram, 33, of Khanewal, Punjab, Pakistan |
| Website | LabelsBank.com, now seized |
| Alleged sales | More than 5.1 million labels to over 5,200 customers |
| Price | A flat rate of about $2 a label |
| Alleged loss | More than $126 million to the US Postal Service |
| Charges | 10 counts: conspiracy, counterfeit postage and wire fraud |
| Court | US federal court, Southern District of Florida |
| Status on October 6, 2026 | No arrest announced. Reward of up to $100,000 offered |
What US prosecutors say happened
According to the US Attorney's Office in Miami, LabelsBank presented itself as a place to buy postage for parcels sent through the US Postal Service. It was not approved to sell postage at all.
The price is the centre of the allegation. Real postage depends on what you are sending: a heavy box going across the country costs far more than a small envelope going to the next town. LabelsBank is said to have charged the same amount, around $2, for any parcel of any weight going anywhere.
Customers paid the site, received a label, printed it and stuck it on a parcel. The parcel then entered the mail and was carried and delivered, while the postal service was paid nothing for it. Multiply that by 5.1 million labels and you reach the figure prosecutors give: more than $126 million in postage that was never paid.
US Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones described the alleged scheme as simple but massive.
How a fake postage label works
A modern shipping label is mostly a barcode. When postage is bought properly, that barcode is tied to a payment record: this parcel, this weight, this service, paid for by this account.
A counterfeit label copies the look of a real one. It has a barcode, a tracking number and the familiar layout, so at a glance it passes. The difference is behind the barcode, where no valid payment exists for that parcel.
That also explains how such schemes are found. Postal systems compare what was scanned with what was paid for, and labels that do not match are flagged. The court documents made public so far do not describe the exact method LabelsBank is accused of using to produce its labels, so this article does not guess at it.
How it allegedly ran from Pakistan
This is the part people ask about most, and the honest answer is that very little detail has been released.
What US authorities have said:
- The accused is a resident of Khanewal, and the site sold postage for the US mail.
- The business was a website. A scheme of this kind needs no warehouse, no stock and no presence in the country where the labels are used.
- Four of the ten counts are wire fraud, a charge US prosecutors use when electronic communications or payments are part of an alleged fraud.
- One count is conspiracy, which by definition involves more than one person. No other person has been publicly named.
- The head of the Postal Inspection Service in Miami referred to transnational criminal organisations when announcing the case.
What has not been made public:
- How the labels were technically produced
- How customers paid, and where the money went
- How long the site operated
- Who else, if anyone, was involved
- Where Mr Akram is now
Some reports in Pakistani media describe him as a software engineer and add other claims about his background. Those details do not appear in the US government's statements, so we have left them out.
The charges and possible sentence
A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida returned the indictment in late September 2026. It contains:
- One count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to make and sell counterfeit postage
- Five counts of making and selling counterfeit postage labels
- Four counts of wire fraud
The conspiracy and counterfeit postage counts each carry up to five years in prison. Each wire fraud count carries up to 20 years. Those are legal maximums. Actual sentences are set by a judge after a conviction and are usually lower.
Alongside the indictment, the postal service obtained a court order to seize the LabelsBank.com domain and shut the website down.
The $100,000 reward
On October 5, 2026, the US Postal Inspection Service announced a reward of up to $100,000, roughly Rs 2.8 crore, for information that leads to Mr Akram's arrest and conviction. The US Attorney shared it publicly with a short message: the website has been shut down, and now they need help finding him.
Tips go to US postal inspectors on 1-877-876-2455. Callers are asked to say "Law Enforcement" when prompted.
No extradition request has been made public, and we found no public comment from Pakistani authorities at the time of writing.
What happens to people who bought the labels
More than 5,200 customers are said to have used the site. Many were probably small online sellers looking for cheaper shipping. That does not protect them from the consequences.
- Parcels can be stopped. Under USPS rules, a parcel carrying counterfeit postage is treated as abandoned. It can be opened and disposed of, so the seller loses the goods and the customer receives nothing.
- Marketplaces act on it. Undelivered orders lead to refunds, bad reviews and suspended seller accounts.
- Knowingly using counterfeit postage is a crime under US federal law, separate from selling it.
How to spot fake USPS labels
For anyone who ships to or within the United States, including sellers and freelancers in Pakistan who run US stores, the warning signs are consistent:
- One flat price for everything. Real postage changes with weight, size and distance. A site that charges $2 for any parcel is not selling real postage.
- Discounts that are too deep. Approved resellers do offer lower commercial rates. They do not offer 80 or 90 percent off.
- No sign of USPS approval. USPS sells postage on USPS.com and through providers it has approved. If a seller is not one of them, do not buy.
- Payment only by cryptocurrency, gift card or direct transfer. Legitimate postage providers take ordinary card payments and give invoices.
- Sold through chat groups or social media. Label sellers that advertise in private groups, with no company details, are a common pattern in these cases.
If you think you were sold counterfeit postage, stop using the labels and report it to the US Postal Inspection Service.
Postal fraud also reaches people as messages. Fake "your parcel is on hold" emails and texts copy the USPS name to steal card details. Our guides on how to spot phishing emails and how to report them cover that side.
Why this case matters
For the US, it is one of the larger counterfeit postage cases to be made public, and it shows the postal service now pursues the websites that sell the labels, not only the parcels that carry them.
For Pakistan, it lands at a difficult time. Thousands of Pakistani freelancers and online sellers depend on being trusted by American customers, payment companies and marketplaces. A case like this, proven or not, makes that trust harder to earn for people who had nothing to do with it.
The case is at an early stage. We will update this article when a court date, an arrest or a response from the accused is made public.
Common questions
Who is Faheem Akram?
Faheem Akram is a 33-year-old man from Khanewal, in Pakistan's Punjab province. A US federal grand jury in Florida has charged him with running LabelsBank.com, a website accused of selling counterfeit US postage labels. He has not been convicted and is presumed innocent. Other people share this name and have nothing to do with the case.
What was LabelsBank?
LabelsBank.com was a website that sold US Postal Service shipping labels for a flat price of about $2 each, whatever the size, weight or destination of the parcel. US prosecutors say the site was not authorised to sell postage and that the labels were counterfeit. The domain was seized under a US court order in September 2026.
Is LabelsBank legit?
No. US authorities say LabelsBank was never authorised to sell USPS postage, and the site has been seized and shut down. Real postage is sold only by USPS and the providers it approves, and the price depends on the weight, size and destination of the parcel.
How much money is involved in the case?
Prosecutors allege that more than 5,200 customers bought over 5.1 million labels through the site, and that the US Postal Service lost more than $126 million in unpaid postage as a result.
Has Faheem Akram been arrested?
No arrest had been announced as of October 6, 2026. On October 5 the US Postal Inspection Service offered a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
What happens to a parcel sent with a fake USPS label?
USPS can stop it. Under USPS rules, a parcel carrying counterfeit postage is treated as abandoned and can be opened and disposed of, so the seller loses the item and the buyer never receives it.