NIA arrests key accused couple in trafficking of women from Bangladesh for prostitution; 3 rescued

The NIA on Saturday arrested an Indian man and his Bangladeshi wife from Hyderabad for their alleged involvement in trafficking of women from Bangladesh to India for sexual exploitation, an official said.

Justin alias Abdul Salam, 47, the key conspirator in the cross-border human trafficking racket case, was involved in running brothels at various places in Hyderabad and other parts of India, he said. The NIA also arrested his wife Shivuli Khatoon, 29, a Bangladeshi national, the official said. Khatoon, who entered India illegally from Bangladesh in 2012, has emerged as one of the key players in the case, he said.

The case, registered by the NIA last year under the relevant provisions of the IPC and the Prevention of Immoral Traffic Act, pertains to the trafficking of people from Bangladesh to various cities in India including Hyderabad for sexual exploitation, the official said. Justin along with his associates conspired to bring girls illegally from Bangladesh through a well-organised network of agents in Bangladesh and India for engaging them in prostitution, the NIA said.

In the case, three Bangladeshi nationals Mohd. Yousuf Khan, Bithi Begum and Sojib Shaik, and one Indian national, Ruhul Amin Dhalli, have already been arrested and a charge sheet against them was filed in March this year, the premier investigation agency said. Searches were conducted at Justin's ancestral and rented houses, and "incriminating" documents have been recovered, it said.

Two young women were also rescued from Justin's house during the searches. They had been illegally trafficked into India a few months ago from Bangladesh for sexual exploitation through his associates, it said. During search at Khatoon's house, one more woman has been rescued who was found hiding in an improvised hideout in the house. The three women, who have been rescued, were illegally trafficked into India from Bangladesh for sexual exploitation, through the associates of Justin and Khatoon. Further investigation in the case is going on, the NIA added.