New Delhi, May 16 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has chargesheeted five persons, including an absconding alleged mastermind, in a case related to human trafficking and cyber slavery linked to Cambodia, officials said.
According to the agency, the accused were part of an organised syndicate that lured Indian youth to Cambodia on the promise of legitimate jobs and high salaries before forcing them to work for scam companies there.
The chargesheet was filed before a special NIA court in Patna against Anand Kumar Singh alias Munna Singh and four others under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, the agency said in a statement.
Three of the accused — Abhay Nath Dubey of Uttar Pradesh, Abhiranjan Kumar of Bihar and Rohit Yadav of Uttar Pradesh — were arrested in February this year after arriving in New Delhi from Cambodia, while another accused, Prahlad Kumar Singh, is currently out on bail.
The NIA said investigations revealed that the victims were trafficked to Cambodia, where their passports were seized and they were allegedly subjected to mental and physical torture when they resisted working for fraudulent cyber scam operations.
The victims were allegedly confined forcibly and denied food and water, while some were also given electric shocks, the agency said.
The probe found Anand Kumar Singh to be the alleged kingpin of the network who recruited youths through sub-agents and travel agents operating in different parts of India.
“He was working with associates in Cambodia to illegally traffic victims and was charging USD 2,000 to 3,000 for each youth sold to fake companies,” the statement said.
The case was registered by the NIA as RC-10/2024/NIA/DLI.
The agency said further investigation is underway to identify other members of the syndicate and uncover the larger conspiracy behind the trafficking network.(KNS)
