Kolkata/New Delhi, Jun 11: A Chinese national apprehended while trying to cross the India-Bangladesh border illegally has told the investigators that he and his associates have smuggled as many as 1,300 Indian SIM cards into their country by hiding them in undergarments, the BSF said on Friday.
Han Junwe (35), a resident of China's Hubei province, has been handed over by the Border Security Force (BSF) to the West Bengal police for "further legal proceedings".
He was nabbed by a BSF patrol party from the Malda district of the state on Thursday.
"Junwe has been a wanted criminal and upon thorough interrogation, shocking facts have come to the fore that he has so far taken around 1,300 Indian SIMs from India to China using fake documents.
"Junwe, through his associates, used to hide the SIMs in undergarments and send these to China," the Kolkata-headquartered south Bengal frontier of the BSF said in a statement.
These SIM cards, it alleged, were used to hack accounts and carry out financial frauds.
"Their (Junwe and his associates) purpose was to cheat people using SIMs and to get their money. His apprehension is a big achievement for the BSF," the force said.
Junwe has told security officials that he was using the India-Bangladesh border to enter the country as he failed to get an Indian visa after his business partner Sun Jiang was arrested by the Lucknow Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in a case of fraud recently.
"Since then, the process of issuance of a Blue Notice (issued by the Interpol) against Junwe was also initiated as per procedure," the BSF said.
A Blue Notice is generated to collect additional information about a person's identity, location or activities in relation to a crime.
The BSF claimed that a large amount of "suspicious" electronic devices were recovered from Junwe.
The Chinese national has told the interrogators that he visited India at least four times in the past and has a hotel in Gurgaon, near Delhi.
In a video statement provided by the force on Thursday, Junwe said he entered India by "mistake" and that he wanted to "surrender" before the Lucknow ATS.
He also said he visited India in the past in connection with e-commerce business.
The Border Security Force apprehended a Chinese national on June 10. He was allegedly seen crossing the India-Bangladesh border illegally and then 'stealthily' moving forward
— Hindustan Times (@htTweets) June 11, 2021
When confronted, the man named Han Junwe tried to run, but was caught and interrogated, as per the BSF. pic.twitter.com/CJFLQprneJ
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Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
