Mumbai court refuses to grant NIA custody of 2 detained on human trafficking charges

Mumbai: A special court has refused to grant the National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody of two people arrested for their alleged involvement in human trafficking in which Indians were lured to foreign countries with the promise of well-paid jobs.

In the order issued on Tuesday, Special Judge AK Lahoti, however, said the NIA could interrogate the accused, Jerry Phillips Jacob and Godafi Alvarez, while they were in judicial custody.

Some Indians, mostly men aged 20 to 45, were sent to countries like Thailand and Cambodia where they were tortured and subjected to slavery, the NIA said.

Jacob and Alvarez were arrested by Mumbai police in March for sending Indians to Thailand, where they were held hostage in extremely poor conditions.

The two have been booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 370 (human trafficking) and other charges and are currently in judicial custody.

The NIA recently took over the investigation, citing the presence of international human trafficking.

The court on Monday allowed the investigating agency to formally arrest the accused.

Following this, the NIA sought their custody, claiming it was an “international conspiracy” where young Indians being trafficked to countries like Thailand, Cambodia, etc., were being forced to work in fake call centers and engaging in credit card fraud, the NIA said. the tribunal.

These victims were tortured and subjected to slavery; the NIAs had submitted before the court.