Immoral trafficking: Two accused were already under trial over flesh trade

Among the four persons arrested by UT Police on Saturday on charges of immoral trafficking, Ashwani Sethi, the owner of hotel Royal Plaza in Daria village has been arrested by the UT Police for the second time and so has the co-accused Abhishek Tiwari. As per police sources, the duo had spent three months behind bars and are presently under trial in an alleged flesh trade racket. The other two accused have been identified as Gurmeet Singh and Hemraj. The four accused were produced in court Sunday and were sent to judicial custody.

A police official said, "Sethi and Tiwari are already facing a trial in the lower court on charges of immoral trafficking. The duo was arrested in 2008 and spent three months in jail. One of the victims rescued in 2008 was a juvenile."

The accused who were arrested on late Saturday evening were running had been running the racket for the past few months. Police sources said the accused were targeting poverty-stricken women and giving them a 'salary' of Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 a month.

"One of the victim's told us that they were kept on the fourth floor of the hotel. The accused would assure the girl of a job but not the nature of the job initially. If they refused to attend to a client, the accused used to keep them hungry till she agreed," said the police source.

With the help of rickshaw pullers and auto-rickshaw drivers, the accused used to come in contact with the victims. "Abhishek Tiwari, a native of UP has been living with a girl in his Panchkula Sector 10 rented accommodation. The girl whom he lives with is also a victim," said one of the investigating officers.

Two of the victims who were rescued belonged to Punjab and Uttar Pradesh and one of the girls was from Darjeeling. The victims were produced to the duty magistrate late Saturday night. The victims were discharged by the magistrate.

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