A gang oh human traffickers embezzled Tk 3 crore through human trafficking from different victims across the country.
According to the sources in the elite Rapid Action Battalion(RAB),the syndicate has extorted around Tk 3 crore from innocent and unemployed youths by falsely luring them with high-paying jobs in various countries including Europe and the Middle East.
RAB officials informed journalists this while disclosing arrests of gang leader Mahbub ul Hasan (50) and his key associate Mahmud Karim (36) from the city.
Commander of RAB-3 Lt.Col. Arif Mohiuddin Ahmed made the disclosure at a press conference at Karwan Bazar RAB Media Center on Friday.
He said that based on secrete inform, a team of RAB-3 conducted raid in Shantinagar area of the capital on Thursday.
RAB team arrested Mahbub ul Hasan and Mahmud Karim.
A total of 521 passports, 65 fake course certificates prepared for employment abroad, 300 medical certificates and other materials were seized from them.
The attested human trafficking gang members embezzled huge amount of money from various helpless poor people, he said. They collect passports of the people who want to go to different countries of Europe and Middle East through brokers in different parts of Bangladesh. Thus they have collected 521 passports in the last two years. Those who want to go to the Middle East paid Tk two to three lakh each and those who want to go to Europe paid Tk six to seven lakh to the human trafficking.
The RAB official also said that the accused Mahbub is a member of organized human trafficking and fraud gang since 2000. They fraudulently sent many people to various Middle Eastern countries with the lure of high-paying jobs abroad. After reaching the foreign country, the fraud gang cheated again in association with their agents stationed abroad. They were taken to an undisclosed location and kept hostage. They tortured them physically and mentally.
RAB-3 chief said that the accused do not have any license to operate a travel agency or a recruiting agency. Their only goal is to make more profit or money in the short term, without effort.
Lt. Col. Arif Mohiuddin Ahmed also said that legal action is being taken against the arrested human trafficking gang .