Mahasamund District police have dismantled a complex international human trafficking and theft ring with the arrest of four individuals, including two Bangladeshi nationals. The gang was responsible for nine theft incidents across Sankara, Basna, and Saraipali police station areas. The accused, posing as utensil sellers, conducted reconnaissance of vacant houses before committing thefts. Among those arrested are Milan Mandal, the Bangladeshi mastermind, and his accomplice, Mohammad Shafiq Sheikh alias Babu Sheikh, also from Bangladesh. Additionally, Afsar Mandal, a resident of West Bengal, was apprehended for his role in international human trafficking and selling stolen goods. Goldsmith Jaidev Karmakar, also from West Bengal, was arrested for purchasing stolen jewellery. Milan Mandal and Mohammad Shafiq Sheikh had obtained fake Aadhaar and PAN cards to conceal their Bangladeshi identities. Investigations revealed that Milan Mandal had illegally entered

 

India from Bangladesh ten times since 2003. Afsar Mandal facilitated the illegal entry of individuals from Bangladesh into India and their subsequent movement back. He also used Hawala networks to send stolen money and goods to Bangladesh. Police recovered diamond, gold, and silver jewellery worth Rs 58,52,000, Rs 7,000 in cash, and a motorcycle used in the crimes valued at Rs 46,000, totalling Rs 59,05,000. The accused have prior criminal records, with Milan Mandal having served time in Raigarh district jail for theft. Cases have been registered against the accused at Basna and Sankara police stations for theft, and against the Bangladeshi nationals and Afsar Mandal at Saraipali police station under sections 14 and 14A of the Foreigners Act, 1946.

 

The investigation began following a theft in January at the residence of Dinesh Agarwal in Basna, where jewelry and cash worth Rs 5 lakh were stolen. A similar theft occurred in February at Devnath Patel’s residence in Sankara, with losses amounting to Rs 4,43,000. Due to a similar modus operandi, a joint team from Sankara, Basna, and the Cyber Cell investigated the cases. They apprehended Milan Mandal and Mohammad Shafiq Sheikh from a lodge in Saraipali. Mandal confessed to the thefts and implicated his accomplices. Mandal revealed that he sold stolen jewellery to Jaydev Karmakar through Afsar Mandal and sent the proceeds to his wife,

 

Manoara, in Bangladesh. Afsar Mandal, who admitted to facilitating illegal border crossings, confessed to sending Rs 18,10,000 to Bangladesh through Ganesh Barman. Mandal has been imprisoned in a theft case in Raigarh district and booked in a case at Police Station Basna under the Sections of theft, FIR No. 26/25 under sections 331 (4), 305 (A) BNS and at Police Station Sankara under crime no. 35/25 under sections 331 (4), 305 (A) of BNS. Ganesh Barman, who uses female agents to smuggle money and goods across the border, delivered the funds to Mandal’s wife through an agent named Firdus in Bangladesh. The arrested individuals are Milan Mandal, 40, from Bangladesh, residing in Karnataka, Afsar Mandal, 70, from West Bengal, Jaydev Karmakar, 54, from West Bengal and Mohammad Shafiq Sheikh alias Babu Sheikh, 43, from Bangladesh, residing in Karnataka.