CBI extradited 33 fugitives under ‘Operation Trishul’ in a year: Report

These people, hiding in other countries, were brought back after the nodal agency coordinated with national central bureaus of other nations.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has extradited 33 fugitives involved in various criminal activities under its ‘Operation Trishul’ in the past one year. “CBI has successfully extradited 33 criminals since January 2022 that includes six criminals in 2023,” a senior official with the agency told news agency ANI.

Further attempts to bring back other fugitives are underway as the CBI official said the agency is coordinating with nodal agencies of other countries.

These people, hiding in other countries, were brought back after the nodal agency coordinated with national central bureaus of other nations. The official revealed that in recent, Red Notice subject Mohammed Haneefa Makkatt, wanted by Kerala police for the kidnapping and murder in a 2006 case, was extradited back to India on Sunday.

The accused was traced with the help of Interpol Saudi Arabia, which informed of his location and requested a team be sent there to proceed with his extradition. Accordingly, the accused was brought back by the Kerala police team. On Tuesday, CBI also arrested Harchand Singh Gill, a director of the Pearls Group, who was deported from Fiji in connection with an alleged multi- thousand crore financial scam executed by the company. The accused also had a red notice issued by Interpol against him.

Further attempts to bring back other fugitives are underway as the CBI official said the agency is coordinating with nodal agencies of other countries regarding absconding accused. “Several cases are under process, and the absconding accused will be extradited soon,” ANI reported quoting an official.

What is a red notice?

Interpol explains that a “‘Red Notice’ is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.” However, they clarified that it is not an international arrest warrant. These notices are restricted to use by law enforcement agencies. At present, globally 7012 public red notices are in circulation in which 211 are Indian nationals, the agency’s data revealed. They include five women.