Siliguri cops start unearthing girl trafficking rackets, rescue nine

After the macabre newborn trafficking racket came to light in Baduria on Tuesday, Siliguri Police started an investigation to unearth girl trafficking rackets.

They have already rescued nine girls from the city fringes, who had eloped with their fiancé who later, tried to traffic them to Nepal and Bangladesh.

After rescuing these girls, the police have started searching for those men who tried to traffic the girls across the border.

The investigation reveals that the men tempted the girls on Facebook by chatting with them. The girls were promised marriage by them over the chat. Then, they were called up at a hidden place with their baggage to escape to an unknown destination, the victims informed the police.

However, one of the victims said that it was her uncle who sold her to a trafficker. “Out of nine girls, eight were victims of being tempted in Facebook chat. One girl was abducted from the Dhaba,” said an investigating officer.

However, the girls, most of who were minors were tempted by the men through Facebook chat. The police have leant that a racket, consisting around 8-10 traffickers, conspired the whole plot. They targeted the girls who were frequent on Facebook. They insisted the girls to meet them in person.

There were several incidents of girl trafficking which has happened before in Siliguri. The traffickers and the victims are mostly apprehended by the BSF along the border.

The victims are then sent to transit home rather than to a police station till her antecedents are verified by the Bangladesh government.

“The modus operandi of these traffickers is very unique. They clicked the photographs of the girls and posted it to the Facebook wall. Later, they blackmailed the girls and forced them to elope with them,” said investigating officer.

It should be recalled that the arrest of two traffickers from Siliguri few months ago in a joint raid by Delhi police Crime Branch and CID has revealed how minor girls are being trafficked and held captive at hotels in the city.

Police officials say that those gangs usually tie up with some hotels in popular tourist destinations across the country where the children are employed as prostitutes. They are usually kept under observation and are on the move in order to avoid being detected by the police.