French police were questioning two men Friday a day after officials grounded a Nicaragua-bound plane carrying more than 300 Indian passengers over suspected “human trafficking.”
The Airbus A340, which had flown in from the UAE on Thursday, landed at Vatry airport in eastern France for a technical stopover after an anonymous tip-off that it was carrying passengers likely to be “victims of human trafficking,” according to the Paris prosecutors office.
The two men in custody were among the passengers, the office said. “Identity checks are being carried on the 303 passengers and on the cabin crew,” said the prosecutor’s office. They were also checking the conditions in which the passengers were being transported and the purpose of their journey. The French agency reported that minors were among the passengers.
Indian authorities asked for consular access which was granted, following which, a team was dispatched from Paris to Vatry airport. In a statement on X, the Indian embassy in France said that the authorities in Paris had informed them of the situation. “Embassy team has reached & obtained consular access,” it added. “We are investigating the situation, also ensuring wellbeing of passengers.”
French authorities informed us of a plane w/ 303 people, mostly Indian origin, from Dubai to Nicaragua detained on a technical halt at a French airport. Embassy team has reached & obtained consular access. We are investigating the situation, also ensuring wellbeing of passengers.— India in France (@IndiaembFrance) December 22, 2023
It is believed that the passengers might have planned to travel to Central America to attempt illegal entry into the US or Canada. After landing in France, they were first kept on the aircraft, but then let out and given individual beds in the terminal building. According to government sources, most passengers were from Gujarat and Punjab, who were tutored that they were travelling for tourism.
On Friday, police and gendarmes cordoned off the entire airport and white tarpaulin sheets covered the bay windows of the airport’s arrivals hall. The Vatry airport is located 150 kilometres east of Paris. French Border police can initially hold a foreign national for up to four days if they land in France and are prevented from travelling on to their intended destination. French law allows for that period to be extended to eight days if a judge approves it, then another eight days in exceptional circumstances, up to a maximum of 26 days.
(With agency inputs)
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