Gujarat resident held at Mumbai airport for trafficking 2 men to Laos on fake job offers

Mumbai, May 27 (PTI) A 29-year-old man from Gujarat was intercepted at the international airport in Mumbai and later arrested after it was found he was trafficking two young men to Laos with fake job offers, a police official said on Tuesday.

According to the official of the Sahar police station, which has jurisdiction over the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) area, all three were caught by immigration officer Deepchand Lalji Singh after he got suspicious of them.

One of them, Parthkumar Ajaybhai Chauhan, was identified by police as the "mastermind" of the job scam. He was allegedly attempting to traffic the two young men by luring them with false promises of high-paying jobs abroad, he said.

The incident came to light on Sunday night when an immigration officer was checking the documents of passengers Chauhan (29) and Yash Manubhai Prajapati (21), both from Gujarat, who arrived for immigration clearance.

They were booked on flight VJ-884 to Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) and onward to Vientiane, Laos. During questioning about the purpose of their visit to the Southeast Asian country, both claimed they were going for employment, according to the official.

However, inconsistencies in their responses raised suspicion, especially when it emerged Chauhan was accompanying Prajapati and had arranged the entire travel. The matter was escalated to wing in-charge (immigration) for further investigation, he said.

While this interrogation was ongoing, another passenger, Arun Shanbhai Jinjala (20), approached the immigration counter and was found to be on the same flight as the duo. Suspecting similar intentions, Jinjala was also referred to the wing in-charge.

Following questioning, the immigration department concluded that Chauhan had conspired to traffic the two men under the guise of overseas employment. All three were handed over to local local for further action.

Chauhan was placed under arrest, while detailed questioning of the other two was underway, the official added. PTI ZA RSY