VATRY, France: 13 unaccompanied minors are among the many greater than 300 Indian passengers of a Nicaragua-bound aircraft held in France over suspected human trafficking, authorities instructed AFP on Saturday (Dec 23).
The Airbus A340 has been held at Vatry airport, 150km east of Paris, since arriving from Dubai on Thursday following an nameless tip-off that it was carrying potential victims of human trafficking.
The civilian safety unit of the Marne division mentioned the aircraft was carrying 13 unaccompanied minors in addition to accompanied minors, with their ages starting from 21 months to 17 years.
The 303 passengers of the flight operated by Romanian firm Legend Airways have been nonetheless within the airport’s entrance corridor on Saturday morning, an AFP reporter noticed.
Tarpaulin lined the doorway corridor’s glass exterior and close by administrative buildings, whereas police and gendarmes prevented entry.
Two passengers have been in custody on Friday as a part of the investigation.
Liliana Bakayoko, a lawyer for the airline, mentioned all crew members had been questioned and allowed to depart.
