Man traffics wife, her sister to India

Bangladesh desk: Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested two suspected human traffickers conducting separate raids in Mymensingh early yesterday.

The arrestees are Mohammad Yusuf Mia, 32, of Mymensingh’s upazila, and Mohammad Robbil Sheikh, 29, of Narail’s Kalia upazila, said the elite force.

Mohammad Anwar Hossain, assistant director and media officer of Rab-14, told The Daily Star that the arrestee Yusuf introduced himself as a factory worker and married a 22-year-old woman of Mymensingh’s Gafargaon upazila.

Primarily, he did not inform family members about the marriage, but as it was revealed, he started living with his wife and 19-year-old sister-in-law.

At one stage, he trafficked both his wife and sister-in-law to India in exchange for a huge sum of money, the Rab official said, quoting the arrestee.

Rab conducted a raid in Ishwarganj’s Balihata Kandabari village around 12:00 noon yesterday and arrested Yusuf.

The elite force members also seized gold ornaments and Tk 224,405 cash from his possession.

According to Rab, Robbil transacted a huge amount of money through different bank accounts.

The victims of the trafficking racket were kept at a safe house in India’s Kolkata and would be returned to Bangladesh soon, the Rab official added.

The arrestees are being interrogated at Rab office in Mymensingh as of filing this report. They will be handed over to Sreepur Police Station later, Rab source said.