CBI raids 4 states over trafficking network sending Indians to SE Asia for jobs

CBI raids 9 locations across four states, busts network trafficking Indians to SE Asia scam hubs posing as overseas job offers

Published on: May 6, 2026, 20:15:39 IST

By Neeraj Chauhan, New Delhi

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) carried out searches in four states in connection with its probe into an organised network of agents engaged in trafficking Indian nationals to South-East Asian countries under the pretext of lucrative overseas job opportunities, the agency said on Wednesday.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has carried out searches in four states. (Shutterstock/ Representative photo)

The nine locations covered in the raids include Mumbai, Delhi, Uttarakhand’s Kashipur, and Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda, Lucknow and Saharanpur.

“These actions follow an extensive nationwide enquiry during which statements from victims were recorded. The agency has also undertaken detailed financial analysis, including tracking cryptocurrency transactions, to identify individuals involved in the trafficking network. During the searches, electronic devices containing incriminating evidence were seized,” a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

The spokesperson said that an individual was also arrested following the raids for his role in facilitating the trafficking.

The CBI’s probe into the trafficking network has revealed that victims are lured with false promises of high-paying employment and subsequently transported to scam compounds located primarily in Myanmar and Cambodia.

These facilities, operated by transnational cybercrime syndicates, have been described as hubs of “cyber slavery,” where trafficked individuals are forced to participate in various forms of cyber-enabled racket.

“Victims in these compounds are subjected to severe restrictions on movement, with their passports often confiscated upon arrival. Reports indicate instances of both physical and psychological harassment. In several cases, victims have been compelled to seek financial assistance from their families to pay ransom for their release,” the CBI spokesperson added.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Chauhan
Neeraj Chauhan is a senior journalist with Hindustan Times and an investigative reporter specialising in national security, terrorism, organised crime, narcotics, corruption, financial crime and complex investigations. With over 21 years of experience across Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Indian Express and The Pioneer, he has built deep expertise in India’s internal security and law-enforcement landscape. Neeraj has extensively covered India’s principal investigative, intelligence and security agencies, including the NIA, CBI, ED, IB, R&AW, MHA and other central security forces. His work has included deeply reported investigations into terrorism, terror financing, cross-border crime, narcotics trafficking, cybercrime, financial fraud and political and corporate corruption. He has reported on some of the most significant terror attacks and security developments in India over the past two decades, including the Delhi serial blasts, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and the recent Pahalgam attack. His reporting has also chronicled the rise and decline of the Indian Mujahideen, the activities and subsequent crackdown on the Popular Front of India (PFI), Islamist extremist networks, the conflict in Jammu and Kashmir, insurgencies in the Northeast and Maoist violence. Some of Neeraj’s major breaking stories are in Aryan Khan drug case, Sushant Singh Rajput suicide, interception of a 3,000-kg Afghan heroin consignment worth about ₹21,000 crore at Mundra port, Sri Lanka easter bombings, Aarushi-Hemraj murders in Noida, 2G scam, coal block allocation scam, AgustWestland VVIP chopper deal and major bank frauds and extradition cases involving Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya. His reporting is marked by an ability to cultivate sources, analyse confidential and complex documents, and follow investigations over several years—from the initial breakthrough to chargesheets, trials and international legal proceedings. He specialises in making complicated security and investigative developments accessible while examining their wider implications for governance and public policy. A Chevening South Asia Journalism Programme Fellow at the University of Westminster, Neeraj also spent time at the Financial Times as part of the fellowship. He was also a Robert Bosch Media Ambassadors India-Germany Fellow, studying at the University of Tübingen and working with Der Tagesspiegel in Berlin. He has previously taught investigative journalism and crime reporting as a guest faculty member at the Times School of Journalism. Over more than two decades, Neeraj has established himself as an authoritative voice on India’s national security and investigative landscape, with his reporting closely followed by officials, investigators, lawyers, policymakers and readers seeking insight into some of the country’s most complex and consequential developments.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather major national developments and Karnataka Bandh LIVE.