Delhi cops crack human trafficking syndicate, nab 2

In a major breakthrough against organised crime, the Delhi Police unearthed a human trafficking syndicate luring minor girls at Delhi railway stations and transporting them to Jammu and Kashmir for bonded labour, they said on Wednesday.

The breakthrough came after a complaint regarding two missing minor girls, both neighbours, was registered at the Bhalswa Dairy police station. During the investigation of the missing complaint, it was found that the girls were in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer North) Hareshwar Swami said.

Based on the inputs, a team of the Delhi Police and the J&K Police arrested two persons - Salim-ul-Rehman (38) and Suraj (31) - from Prahlad Vihar, Delhi.

During interrogation, Salim disclosed that he runs an agency in Srinagar, through which he trafficked nearly 500 persons in the last two years, charging hefty commissions for each victim.

Meanwhile, Suraj confessed to transporting trafficked victims at the behest of Delhi-based agents, naming multiple associates operating at the Old Delhi railway station, the cop added.

Revealing the modus operandi of the network, the DCP said it involves a wide network of touts and placement agents targeting vulnerable minors and labourers at railway stations and transporting them to J&K for exploitation as domestic workers and bonded labourers.

The syndicate earned huge profits, charging Rs 20,000-25,000 per male and Rs 40,000-60,000 per female victim.

The police also recovered a forged identity card of UP Police sub-inspector from Salim used to evade law enforcement and gain safe passage.

Moreover, the name of some other gang members - Shahbaz Khan, Naresh, Rohit Pandey, and Sohail Ahmad - has also surfaced. The police are pursuing leads to apprehend them, Swami added.

The network used Hawala and UPI-based transaction methods to get money of the trafficked persons.