Mumbai: Navy officer arrested in human trafficking racket involving forged visas to South Korea

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The city crime branch has dismantled a human trafficking racket involving the use of forged documents to obtain visas and send individuals to South Korea, where they would later seek asylum. On Thursday, the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) arrested 30-year-old Vipin Dogra, a lieutenant in the Indian Navy's Western Command, for aiding the trafficking gang. Dogra faces charges under the IPC for cheating, forgery, breach of trust, and criminal conspiracy (Section 120B). He was produced before the 37th Metropolitan Magistrate Court and remanded to police custody. Officials revealed that the CIU received a tip-off about individuals applying for South Korean visas using forged documents. "The arrest was made based on the information and verification. We have found a clear role of the accused in assisting the gang to secure visas," said Datta Nalwade, DCP, Detection.

Police believe Dogra's arrest is just the beginning, as more individuals are involved in the racket. The gang reportedly charged Rs 10 lakh per candidate for facilitating illegal entry into South Korea. According to the crime branch, the accused lieutenant had been involved in the racket for the past 1.5 years and is believed to have sent multiple candidates to South Korea, where they sought asylum. So far, officials have identified five such candidates. "There are 6-7 people involved in the racket. The Indian Navy lieutenant used his position to visit the embassy, introduce himself as a navy officer to make an impression, and secure visas for the candidates, thereby misusing his post to facilitate the human trafficking operation for financial gain," said an officer.

Multiple crime branch teams have been dispatched to different states in search of other individuals accused in the case.