French police detained two people on suspicion of human trafficking.
New Delhi:
A day after France grounded a Nicaragua-bound flight carrying more than 300 Indian passengers on suspicion of “human trafficking”, French police detained two people. Indian officials have also reached the spot and are investigating the situation.
Important information regarding the case:
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France on Friday grounded a charter flight carrying 303 Indian passengers bound for Nicaragua to conduct a judicial investigation.
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The Airbus A340, belonging to Romanian charter company Legend Airlines, took off from the United Arab Emirates and landed at Vetri Airport in eastern France for a technical stopover.
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The Paris public prosecutor said authorities took drastic measures and grounded the flight following an anonymous tip of “human trafficking”. According to the news, some of the passengers on the flight were “victims of human trafficking”.
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Two people have been detained and are being questioned by a specialist organized crime unit.
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India has been granted consular access to reach the people on board. Officials have reached the spot to investigate and ensure the passengers’ well-being.
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“French authorities informed us that a flight from Dubai to Nicaragua was grounded at a French airport due to a technical glitch. Most of the inquiries about these people were of Indian origin. The embassy team has been reached and consular access has also been done. Granted. We have looked into the situation. staying and also ensuring the well-being of the passengers.”
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According to news agency AFP, authorities suspect the passengers may have planned to travel to Central America to try to enter the US or Canada illegally.
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After the flight landed in France, all the passengers were initially kept on the plane, but were later removed and given separate beds in the terminal building. “The reception hall at Watari Airport was converted into a waiting area with individual beds to provide better facilities to passengers,” the prefect office said.
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303 Indians spent the night at the airport and officials are yet to give an update on when they will be allowed to leave.
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If a foreign national lands in France and is prevented from proceeding to his intended destination, the border police may initially detain him for up to four days. French law allows that period to be extended to eight days. If the judge allows, this period can be extended by a further eight days, up to a maximum of 26 days in exceptional circumstances.
(This news is not edited by the NDTV team. It is published directly from the syndicate feed.)