New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday filed charges against three accused, including a suspected fugitive Chinese national, in a human trafficking and cyber fraud operation, run by Indian and foreign agents from Myanmar.The accused, identified as Ankit Kumar @ Ankit Bharadwaj, Ishtikhar Ali @ Ali, and Lisa have been charged under Sections 61(2), 127(4), 143(3), 308(2), 318(4) and 62 r/s 143(3) of BNS and Section 24 of the Migration Act in the charge sheet filed before the Special NIA Court at Panchkula, Haryana.The NIA, which took over the case from Haryana Police, during investigation found that the three, along with known and unknown accomplices, were involved in trafficking vulnerable Indian youth to Myawaddy district in Myanmar.The agency has uncovered a well-organised network of traffickers and pushers involved in illegal activities – ranging from unauthorized recruitment of Indian nationals abroad, to the illegal transportation of victims to carry out criminal operations in Southeast Asia.Ankit Kumar and Ishtikhar Ali, who were arrested, were involved in luring Indian youth by offering legitimate jobs in Thailand and conducting coordinated online interviews with Lisa, who is believed to be a Chinese national residing in Myanmar, according to an NIA spokesperson.
The duo tricked victims by presenting Lisa as a real recruiter and making them believe they would be offered safe jobs in Thailand. The accused arranged the illegal transportation of the victims from India to Myanmar via Thailand.Upon arriving in Myanmar, the trafficked victims were forced to work for online scam companies, create fake social media profiles and interact with people in the USA, UK and Canada to convince them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency apps, NIA investigations revealed. Upon refusal, victims were detained and forced by the scammers to continue engaging in illegal cyber activities. The defendants also forced the victims to pay exorbitant sums for their release.
