A man said to play a key role in a child smuggling syndicate trafficking children from Sri Lanka to Malaysia was arrested in Colombo yesterday after he was deported from Malaysia.
Authorities arrested the Sri Lankan man at the Bandaranaike International Airport after the Malaysian Immigration Department caught him transporting a 14-year-old Sri Lankan boy and his father upon arrival in Malaysia, newspaper the Daily Mirror reported.
The 76-year-old was linked to 17 child smuggling cases.
He had arrived in Malaysia with his latest alleged victims via an AirAsia flight on Monday.
The Malaysian Immigration Department was tipped off to apprehend the man after the Border Surveillance Unit (BSU) in the Sri Lankan Airport spotted the group there on their way to fly to Malaysia.
The syndicate reportedly targets underprivileged families in Malaysia to offer them cash in exchange for their children's birth certificates and information.
The documentation is then used to apply for Malaysian passports for Sri Lankan children matching the description of the Malaysian children.
Following that, the Sri Lankan children will travel to the UK or Europe on Malaysian passports. The syndicate is paid up to €50,000 for the service.
From December 2022 to April 2023, it was found that 13 Sri Lankan children aged between 11 and 16 had landed in the UK or France through these means. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.