Job racket: Indian agents in Dubai hiring men for Myanmar

Two Indian nationals living in Dubai are on the radar of the Mumbai Crime Branch, which is investigating the Myanmar job racket. The cops have issued a lookout circular against one suspect and are working towards issuing an LoC against the other, said sources. Hundreds of Indians, who were lured with lucrative job offers, are stuck along the Myanmar-Thailand border where they are being forced to commit cybercrimes.

Sources said the name ‘Neeraj Sachdev' cropped up during the probe by Unit 9 of the Crime Branch. The other suspect has been identified as Yaseer. The police believe that Chinese agents in Thailand are using their Dubai-based contacts to recruit maximum Indian nationals by enticing them with "attractive" jobs. Once trapped, the hapless victims are smuggled from Thailand to places in and around Myawaddy in southeastern Myanmar where they are forced to pull off crypto scams at gunpoint.

Also Read: Mumbai: Two who bought their way to freedom

The victims have complained of unspeakable cruelty at the hands of their captors. "We are currently investigating two different cases, and three arrests have been made. The masterminds of the scam appears to be operating from Dubai and are contacting Indian agents who are known to them but whom they have never met," a Crime Branch officer told mid-day.

In the case of two Dongri residents who returned from a Myanmar slave camp after spending about '5 lakh each, two accused have been identified as Mumbai agents Nawaz Nasir Khan and Umar Kadar Chiruvattam. One of the victims has told the police that he was first approached by Yaseer. "During the course of the investigation, we have found that none of them had ever met a Dubai-based person nor seen him physically. Still, we are collecting his details which include his real identity to complete LoC formalities," the officer said.

In the Bandra case, where one accused was already arrested, the police have found that he was getting recruitment details from Dubai-based agent Sachdev. Sources said Sachdev is an Indian national and went to Dubai earlier this year. "After collecting all his details, we have issued an LoC against him," said the officer.