In a significant bust, the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) of the Mumbai Crime Branch has arrested a Navy officer Lieutenant Commander for allegedly operating a human trafficking syndicate.
He was apprehended at the Western Naval Command headquarters in Colaba. The syndicate targeted individuals in North India who were desperate to work abroad. Operating with a group of five or six people, they had members dedicated to recruiting potential candidates, while others specialized in fabricating necessary documents, such as bank statements and medical certificates.
His primary role was to ensure their clients received visa approvals from the Korean embassy. He would frequently visit the Korean embassy in Worli, dressed in his Navy uniform, to inquire about the status of visa applications.
The group arranged for clients to travel on tourist visas using forged documents, instructing them to destroy these documents upon arrival to facilitate their application for South Korean citizenship.
The entire process reportedly cost around Rs 10 lakh per person. In a recent incident, He clashed with an embassy official after a client from Jammu and Kashmir was denied a visa due to document discrepancies.
Using his naval rank, he attempted to pressure the embassy into approving the visa, leading to his arrest. The CIU continues to investigate the extent of the racket and is working to identify other individuals involved in the syndicate.
