For 24 hours, a plane has been grounded at the confined Châlons-Vatry airport in Marne. This plane from the United Arab Emirates is suspected of having transported victims of human trafficking.
Located between Troyes and Reims, Châlons-Vatry airport has been confined since Thursday December 21. Authorities suspect human trafficking victims were on board plane from UAE, learnt BFMTV confirming information from The union. The plane, belonging to a Romanian company, would still be grounded on Friday December 22. Authorities were reportedly informed by an anonymous source, indicating that some passengers on the flight could be victims of human trafficking. Two passengers have already been placed in police custody, according to information from BFMTV, to “verify and corroborate the suspicion of human trafficking by an organized gang”.
303 passengers of Indian nationality
The Marne prefecture indicated that the plane had taken off from Dubai and was due to make a technical stopover in Châlons-Vatry before reaching its final destination in Nicaragua. But the plane remained stuck on the tarmac with 303 passengers of Indian nationality on board. The prefecture immediately issued an order to confine the airport in view of “the significant arrival of foreign nationals”. The prosecution also contacted the Air Transport Gendarmerie Brigade (BGTA) and a judicial investigation was opened by the Paris prosecutor’s office. The National Jurisdiction for the Fight against Organized Crime (JUNALCO) was also contacted. Before passengers re-embark, the border police, the air transport gendarmerie and the Vitry-le-François Research Brigade carry out interviews and check the identity of all passengers.