A flight bound for Nicaragua, carrying 276 passengers, was detained in France for four days amid suspicions of human trafficking. According to a PTI report, Gujarat Police questioned at least 20 passengers from Gujarat traveling on the flight bound for Nicaragua, diverting them back to France to investigate a suspected illegal immigration network operated from the state. The Airbus A340, carrying 276 passengers, was halted in France for four days due to concerns about human trafficking. It had landed in Mumbai on the morning of December 26.
A senior officer from the State Crime Investigation Department (CID) informed PTI that among these passengers, at least 60 are from Gujarat, some of whom had already reached their respective hometowns in the state. The department is conducting inquiries to determine whether these individuals had any plans to enter the United States illegally after reaching Latin America.
“They were sent back from France to ascertain the involvement of a suspicious illegal immigration network operated from the state. The CID and additional police superintendent S.P. Rajkumar said in reference to inquiries conducted among the 60 people who returned to Gujarat that they were among the 276 passengers traveling to Nicaragua on the Airbus A340, which was halted in France for four days amid suspicions of human trafficking. It had landed in Mumbai on the morning of December 26.
“While we have initiated inquiries, no one is revealing any facts. They claim to have been going there as tourists. We are delving into the details to find out who the agents were behind their trip,” stated the CID – Crime and Railways additional police director S.P. Rajkumar as per the report. Police confirmed that out of the 60 individuals who returned to Gujarat, approximately 20 have already been questioned by the agency.
“We are examining their documents to determine whether they used genuine or fake documents to travel to Central America. We will also investigate their financial transactions because ideally, if they were going as regular tourists, they shouldn’t have had to pay extra to anyone,” stated the senior IPS officer.
On Tuesday, CID (Crime) Police Commissioner Sanjay Khurana said that CID had formed four teams to investigate the case. “CID (Crime) wants to take action against those agents who promised to help the victims enter the United States and other countries (illegally). We have formed four teams to inquire about the promises made by these agents to the victims,” he told AFP.
The majority of the passengers on the plane were from Punjab, where police are also conducting investigations. Punjab Police Senior Officer L.K. Yadav informed AFP, “If any illegality comes to our notice, we are bound to investigate, and we are investigating the matter.”
The Airbus A340 was operated by the Romanian charter company Legend Airlines and was detained at Vatry Airport in Paris last week, where it had stopped for refueling. It had arrived from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and was detained following an anonymous tip that it was transporting potential victims of human trafficking, most of whom returned to India on Monday.
Gujarat Police Commissioner Sanjay Khurana told AFP that the passengers paid “between four million and 12.5 million rupees” ($48,000-150,000) to agents to help them reach the southern border of the United States from South America. He stated, “We want to know how these people came in contact with agents, or if agents contacted them, and what their plan was after reaching Nicaragua.”
Khurana mentioned that out of the 276 passengers who returned to India, 66 were from his state, and the police are conducting interviews with them. “We have identified some people who can provide us with information about the illegal racket, and they are being questioned,” he said.
The majority of the remaining passengers on the flight were from Punjab, where the police are also conducting investigations. Two people among those detained in France were also questioned by the local police regarding suspicions of human trafficking, but after it was established that the passengers had boarded the plane at their own discretion after landing, they were released.