Key suspects identified in international trafficking case

Kochi: Bilal alias Sreekumar of Mavelikkara who was arrested on Thursday in connection with an international sex trafficking case is the key accused involved in identifying and transporting victims abroad, police said.

City police commissioner Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar said on Friday that the racket was working as an organised network, and Bilal was the key link. “What we understand in the primary probe is that he was the one identifying people, recruiting them and supplying them to the racket. It is suspected that he was getting Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh as commission per person.

Police are also investigating events organised by the racket abroad, to identify whether such events were held to recruit victims. The commissioner said that more people have contacted the police alleging similar experiences from the racket. However, police will proceed only after investigating the genuineness of the complaint.

The prime accused, Stoicy alias Sindhu, 56, a resident of Aluva, was remanded on Thursday in a case filed by a woman who was allegedly exploited after being offered the job of a make-up artist for an event management company in Dubai. She was made to pay Rs 5 lakh for the visa and job as well. The woman said that when she reached Dubai, she was given drinks laced with intoxicants, and she became unconscious after consuming it.

She alleged that she was gangraped by men whom the racket sent to her room after accepting money from them. The racket then sent the visuals of the assault to the phones of her husband and relatives. Police have also found UPI transactions and other communications between Sindhu, Aleena and Manjima, who were arrested earlier.

Police have listed two more persons — Shamla and Rehmath — as the remaining two accused in the case. The commissioner added that all legal efforts were being made to bring back the two accused who are abroad.