On Friday, the National Investigative Agency (NIA) took into custody four individuals who had unlawfully entered India through Tripura. This apprehension unfolded as part of a collaborative effort between the NIA and Tripura police, serving as a crucial step in the ongoing investigation of a human trafficking case initiated by the NIA in Guwahati earlier in the year.
Following due process, the accused individuals are slated to be transported to Guwahati, pending orders from a competent court in Agartala. Once they reach Guwahati, they will be presented before the NIA court for further legal proceedings.
In a previous development on November 8, 2023, the NIA executed a nationwide crackdown, apprehending 29 key operatives involved in human trafficking syndicates linked to the same case.
According to the NIA's official statement, the latest detainees were located in proximity to the Indo-Bangladesh border and were associated with the earlier group of 29 individuals arrested. The agency emphasized that these detainees were part of a well-organized network collaborating with racketeers operating across multiple districts within Tripura, acting in the domain of human trafficking.
This intricate syndicate had broader connections, extending its network to operatives stationed in diverse regions across India, as disclosed by the NIA.
In-depth investigations have uncovered that the recently apprehended four individuals were actively collaborating with traffickers situated beyond the international border. Their primary task was to facilitate the unlawful entry of individuals from Bangladesh into India, marking a significant aspect of the illegal human trafficking enterprise.
The NIA officially registered the case on October 6, 2023, prompted by intelligence reports signalling the existence of organized human trafficking networks functioning along the Indo-Bangladesh border.
Further information received by the NIA indicated the unlawful transportation of individuals from foreign origins with the intent of settling them in various regions across India.
Through its ongoing probe, the NIA uncovered interconnections between these human trafficking syndicates and various facilitators and traffickers operating across different parts of the country and the India-Bangladesh border.
Additionally, the investigations by the NIA unveiled that the recently apprehended individuals, apprehended by the anti-terror agency on Friday, had facilitated forged Indian identity documents for the trafficked individuals arriving from across the border into India. This revelation underscores the extent of their involvement in the illegal human trafficking operations.
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