303 Indian passengers have been detained at Batley airport since their arrival from Dubai on Thursday.
Vatry, France:
A plane carrying 303 Indian passengers detained near Paris on suspicion of human trafficking will be free to depart on Monday, French judicial officials said, but the destination remains unclear.
A Nicaragua-bound Airbus A340 and its Indian passengers arrived 150 km east of Paris on Thursday after arriving from Dubai for refueling after receiving an anonymous tip that it was carrying a potential victim of human trafficking. He was detained at Vatri Airport. .
French prosecutors gave the plane the green light to depart on Sunday after questioning the passengers for two days, and full approval for departure is expected on Monday, the local prefecture said in a statement.
The statement did not mention the destination, but François Proculer, president of the local bar association, said at a press conference that the passengers would be flown to India.
A source close to the investigation told AFP that the Indians were likely workers from the United Arab Emirates who were heading to Nicaragua on their way to the United States or Canada.
Passengers on the flight, operated by Romania’s Legend Airlines, remained at the airport during the investigation.
According to the local prefecture, beds, toilets and showers have been set up, but police are preventing reporters and outsiders from entering the airport.
Paris prosecutors said the passengers included 11 unaccompanied minors.
The two passengers have been detained since Friday “to determine whether their role may have been different from that of other passengers on this journey, and under what circumstances and for what purpose.” has been done.
Twelve of the passengers have applied for asylum, according to a person close to the incident.
The Indian embassy in Paris posted on X on Saturday that “embassy consular personnel” were on the scene to work with French authorities “for the welfare” of the detained passengers toward “early resolution of the situation.” did.
The 30 crew members were not detained. Some were responsible for flights between Dubai and Vatri, while others took over flights to Managua. According to Flightradar24, Legend Airlines only has four aircraft in its fleet.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
