Mumbai police nab kingpin of gang that sold 300 Indian children to buyers in the US
Mumbai police have managed to nab the kingpin of a gang that trafficked a reported 300 children to America. Picked up from financially poor families in Gujarat, the children were sold to the highest bidder.
Kingpin of gang which sold 300 children to US buyers nabbed Five members of the gang including the kingpin have been arrested by Mumbai Police (Representative Image) |Photo Credit: Thinkstock Mumbai: One that seemed to be a small scale human trafficking operation, later turned out to be a massive child trafficking racket operating out of Mumbai. An actor's pro-awareness led to the bust of a gang that is responsible for sending close to 300 children from India to the United States of America. Police have now arrested the kingpin of the racket, Gujarat-resident Rajubhai Gamlewala.Going by his criminal record, Rajubhai entered the business to sell minors to prospective buyers in the US in 2007 charging an estimated Rs 45 lakh for each child. Details about the gang and its operations emerged after the arrests of members of his gang in March of this year. Meanwhile, the police is yet to ascertain the fate of those children already trafficked by the gang under the garb of adoption.
A police officer familiar with the investigation revealed how the gang sought buyers in the US who were looking for Indian children. Once they had a buyer lined up, the gang would approach families in Gujarat plagued with financial difficulties and convince them to sell their child. Once sold, the minors were sent to America alongside a mule who later returned to India. In order to make the children resemble the pictures on their fake passports, the gang would force them to wear makeup. Once the children gained entry into the US, the mule would return with the passport used to transport the child and return it to its original owner.Also Read: Doctors treating sexual assault survivors have to play dual roles, MHA issues guidelinesThe matter came to light in March of this year when actor Preeti Sood received word of minors being subjected to makeup at a salon in Mumbai's Versova. What her friends thought was forced prostitution soon turned out to be a massive adoption racket. A number of gang members were arrested at the time which led police to probe the matter thoroughly and eventually nab the kingpin. DCP (Zone IX) Paramjit Singh Dahiya said that Gamlewala has a prior arrest dating back to 2007 when he was nabbed for passport forgery in Mumbai. Gamlewala along with four other members of his gang have been booked under sections 34 and 373 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which correspond to charges of common intention and buying a minor for purposes of prostitution.
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