3 held in Dhaka over attempted trafficking of woman to China

Two Chinese nationals and a Bangladeshi man have been arrested from Dhaka's Bashundhara Residential Area on charges of human trafficking, the Airport Armed Police Battalion (APBn) said today (28 May).

The arrestees are Chinese citizens Hu Jun Jun, 30, Zhang Leiji, 54, and a Bangladeshi national, Md Nayan Ali, 30.

According to a press release issued by the APBn, a 19-year-old woman approached police at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Monday (26 May) night. She alleged that she was being forcibly trafficked to China. 

Acting on her complaint, APBn officials raided a residence in Bashundhara and detained Hu Jun Jun and Zhang Leiji. Later, Nayan Ali was also arrested during a follow-up operation. 

Other members of the trafficking group reportedly fled the scene upon sensing the presence of law enforcement.

The press release stated that the two Chinese nationals had arrived in Bangladesh about a year ago and established links with local brokers. With assistance from Nayan Ali, they lured the young woman with false promises of marriage and trafficked her through deception. 

A fake address was used to obtain her passport, and she was married off to Hu Jun Jun with a dowry of Tk10 lakh.

Subsequently, a plane ticket was issued in her name as part of an attempt to send her to China forcibly.

Following the incident, the victim's mother filed a case with the Airport Police Station under sections 6(1), 6(2), 7, 8 and 10 of the Human Trafficking Suppression and Prevention Act, 2012.

Efforts are ongoing to arrest the other suspects involved in the trafficking ring, police said.