Officials said on Tuesday that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had filed a formal complaint (FIR) against a Chandigarh-based racket that was reportedly involved in the trafficking of “gullible Indians” to Myanmar under the promise of providing them job opportunities in Thailand.
Under the direction of Riya Sonkar and a colleague named Ajay, the operation attracted unsuspecting people in with the promise of well-paying jobs, only to force them into cybercrime criminal networks.
A recent examination of Sonkar’s property turned up lots of digital proof of the fraud.
Officials claim that Sonkar enticed people by promising them jobs in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia as data entry operators and customer support executives.
Instead, they were transported to Myawaddy in Myanmar, a place well-known for its Chinese and Indian-run cybercrime networks. The victims were threatened with physical harm and even electrocution if they would not comply with the pressure to commit online fraud.
“In case these victims refuse to work on cyber crimes, then they are being given severe punishments, e.g., physical torture, electrocution, etc. Many victims are still trapped in Myawaddy, Myanmar region,” the FIR alleges.
When Sonkar organized to transfer people to Myanmar under the guise of working with a Chinese company, offering a $1,000 salary and other advantages, her lies were exposed.
The victims received airline tickets and business visas for Yangon, Myanmar. Sonkar gave suspicious explanations for the abrupt change of location when questioned, which at first persuaded the victims to continue.
An Indian passenger alerted the victims to the possibility that human traffickers in Myawaddy may set a trap when they boarded the aircraft. The passenger who was notified suggested that they get help from the Indian embassy in Myanmar when they arrived.
When the victims arrived in Yangon, they were met by dubious people posing as representatives of the company.
The victims opted not to follow those people after their fellow traveler alerted them to their suspicions of criminal activity.
Rather than going any further, they made contact with the Indian embassy, which both verified and cautioned them against doing so.
“Indian Embassy got them deported back to India on March 6, 2024, on their own expenses. It has been further learned that Riya Sonkar has a target to recruit 20 Indian nationals in the coming days,” the FIR has alleged.
Sonkar’s ambitions to enlist more people for similar goals were revealed by the investigation, and the scope of the plot was amply demonstrated by the CBI’s search operation.
The agency’s First Information Report (FIR) highlights the seriousness of the crimes enabled by Sonkar and her collaborators by using sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 370(3) (people trafficking) under the Indian Penal Code.
The CBI is continuing to work to break up the ring and protect people who are still stranded in Myanmar. In order to hold those guilty accountable and stop the continued exploitation of vulnerable people looking for work, the agency is collaborating closely with local and international authorities.
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