Trafficking gang bust: 2 Russia-based agents under CBI scanner for sending Indians to Ukraine war
New Delhi (PTI): Two Russia-based agents involved in the human trafficking network that pushed Indians into the Ukraine war zone are under the CBI scanner, officials said on Friday.
The agents allegedly confiscated the passports of Indians arriving in Russia and forced them to fight with the armed forces, officials said. The network was busted by the CBI on Thursday.
Christina and Moinuddin Chippa, a resident of Rajasthan, are based in Russia and were facilitating the trafficking of Indian youth to Russia by offering them lucrative job opportunities there, officials said.
The central probe agency's FIR has listed 17 other visa consultancy companies, their owners and agents spread across India, they said.
The agency has booked them under Indian Penal Code Sections related to criminal conspiracy, cheating and human trafficking.
ALSO READ: CBI busts network involved in trafficking Indians to Russia-Ukraine war zone
The CBI has alleged that the accused persons through their agents trafficked Indian nationals to Russia on the pretext of getting jobs related to the Russian Army, security guards, helpers, better life, and education and a huge amount was charged from these people illegally.
The agents also duped students by providing them admission to dubious private Universities in Russia instead of government or public Universities by offering discounted fees, and visa extensions and ultimately leaving them "at the mercy" of local agents.
Once these aspirants reached Russia their passports were seized by the agents there and they were forced to join the armed forces after combat role training.
"They were being trained in combat roles and provided with Russian Army uniforms and batches. Thereafter, these Indian Nationals are being deployed at front bases in the Russia-Ukraine War Zone against their wishes and put their lives in grave danger," the CBI FIR said.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday had busted the trafficking network.
They said the agency has found 35 instances in which youngsters were taken to Russia after being lured with false promises of high-paying jobs via social media channels and local contacts and agents.
After filing the FIR, the CBI conducted countrywide searches at 13 locations across Delhi, Thiruvananthapuram, Mumbai, Ambala, Chandigarh, Madurai and Chennai.
"The human trafficking network of these agents is spread over several states across the country and they are operating in an organised manner," the spokesperson had said.
The central probe agency has booked 24x7 RAS Overseas Foundation in Delhi and its director Suyash Mukut, O S D Bros Travels and Visa Services Pvt Ltd in Mumbai and its director Rakesh Pandey, Adventure Visa Services Pvt Ltd in Chandigarh and its director Manjeet Singh, and Baba Vlogs Overseas Recruitment Solutions Pvt Ltd in Dubai and its director Faisal Abdul Mutalib Khan alias Baba among others.
"It has been ascertained that some of the victims also suffered grievous injuries in the war zone," the official had said.
"So far, cash worth over Rs 50 lakh, incriminating documents and electronic records like laptops, mobiles, desktops and CCTV footage have been seized. Searches are going on. Certain suspects have also been detained for questioning at various locations," he had added.
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At least 16 dead in strikes as Chernobyl anniversary highlights nuclear risks of Russia-Ukraine war
Kyiv (AP): At least 16 people have been killed in strikes over the weekend across Ukraine, Russian-occupied territory and Russia, local authorities said, as the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster prompted fresh warnings about the risks posed by attacks near the plant during Russia's more than four-year invasion of its neighbour.
The death toll from Russian drone and missile strikes on the city of Dnipro rose to nine, regional head Oleksandr Hanzha said Sunday.
One man was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on the port city of Sevastopol, in Russian-occupied Crimea, Moscow-installed authorities said Sunday. Russia annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, a move that most of the world considered illegal, and has used it as a staging and supply point during the war.
Leonid Pasechnik, the Russia-installed governor in Ukraine's Luhansk region — of which Russia earlier this month said it had taken full control, a claim denied by Ukraine — said three people were killed in an overnight Ukrainian drone strike on a village, after reporting two people were killed in the early hours of Saturday.
Ukraine did not comment on either attack, which could not be independently verified by The Associated Press.
The latest strikes came after a woman was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's Belgorod border region, according to local authorities.
Ukrainian forces also struck an oil refinery in Yaroslavl, deep inside Russian territory, Ukraine's General Staff said Sunday. The strikes sparked fires at the facility, which processes 15 million tons of oil a year and produces gasoline, diesel and jet fuel for the Russian military. Russia did not immediately comment.
Ukraine has developed its own long-range drones, which can reach targets some 1,500 kilometres inside Russia. It has used them recently against Russian oil facilities as Moscow looks to boost its exports after the Trump administration gave it a temporary waiver from sanctions to ease supply constraints.
Kyiv officials complain that Russia will use the additional revenue on new weapons to hit Ukraine harder.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster to warn that Russian attacks risk repeating history.
“Through its war, Russia is once again bringing the world to the brink of a man-made disaster — Russian-Iranian Shaheds regularly fly over the plant, and one of them struck the confinement last year,” he wrote on Facebook.
“The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its reckless attacks,” he said.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, echoed those concerns during a visit to Kyiv, saying repairs to the plant's damaged outer protective shell must begin immediately. IAEA assessments show the damage sustained after a strike last year has already compromised a key safety function of the structure, he said, warning that years of inaction could heighten danger to the original sarcophagus beneath it.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said repairs would require at least 500 million euros (USD 586 million).
Ukrainian officials say a Russian drone struck the outer shell of the plant's New Safe Confinement structure — a USD 2.1 billion archlike enclosure completed in 2019 over the remains of Reactor No 4 — in February 2025. Moscow denied targeting the plant, alleging Kyiv staged the attack.
