New Delhi: Gurugram Police on Monday arrested social media influencer Bobby Kataria for allegedly operating an international human trafficking network. Kataria's arrest came after a joint raid conducted by Gurugram Police and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) at his residence in Sector-109, Gurugram.
During the raids, officials recovered several suspicious documents and a substantial stash of cash, as per a report of India Today TV. Bobby Kataria was arrested following an FIR filed by Gurugram Police, alleging that he and other human traffickers had held over 150 Indians captive, seizing their passports and other documents, and forcing them into cyber fraud operations for a Chinese company.
The FIR also detailed that the victims were subjected to severe mistreatment. The case came to light when Arun Kumar from Gopalganj, Uttar Pradesh, and Manish Tomar from Dhaulapur, Hapur, filed a complaint with Gurugram Police.
They alleged that Kataria had advertised overseas job opportunities on his Instagram page, luring unsuspecting individuals into the trafficking network.
Influenced by the advertisement, Arun Kumar and Manish Tomar contacted Bobby Kataria's team and were summoned to his office in Sector 109, Gurugram. They were charged a registration fee of Rs 2,000 and promised jobs in the UAE.
Pursuing their dreams, they ended up paying Rs 3.5 lakh in three installments into Kataria's accounts. The victims reported that they were sent to Vientiane, Laos, on tickets provided by Bobby Kataria. Upon arrival, they were met by an associate of Kataria who identified himself as Pakistani and took them to a hotel in Vientiane.
The next day, they met another individual named Abhi, who gave them train tickets to Navatuai. Upon reaching Navatuai, they encountered Ankit Shaukeen and Nitish Sharma, who took them to a Chinese company. There, their passports were confiscated, and they were held captive and assaulted.
NIA Probes Links In Bobby Kataria Trafficking Case
The complainants revealed that they were forced into illegal American cyber fraud activities. Desperate and distressed, they eventually managed to escape and reached the Indian embassy, where they exposed the alleged trafficking network run by Bobby Kataria.
The police and the NIA are continuing their investigation to apprehend other individuals involved in the human trafficking syndicate. This is not the first time Bobby Kataria has faced legal trouble.
He was previously arrested for extortion and abusing a woman on social media.
In August 2022, a case was filed against him in Dehradun after a video of him drinking alcohol in the middle of a road went viral.
The Gurugram-based influencer was arrested in 2022 for recording a video of himself smoking a cigarette inside a SpiceJet flight.