PARIS: Four French judges on Sunday began questioning 303 passengers, mostly Indians, of a Nicaragua-bound flight detained by French authorities at Vatry airport, 150 km east of Paris, since Thursday over suspected “human trafficking”, according to local media reports.
“The judges have the authority to extend the detention order being used by border police by eight days initially and for another eight if required. They have two days to complete speaking to the passengers. The judges are being helped by translators, said a report in local newspaper.
According to the French media, some of the passengers spoke Hindi and others Tamil and are believed to have contacted their families by telephone. Ten of the passengers have requested asylum, the newspaper quoted a source close to the case as saying.
The plane includes 11 unaccompanied minors and two passengers in custody since Friday had their detention extended on Saturday evening for up to 48 hours, according to French prosecutors.
The aircraft is owned by Romanian charter company Legend Airlines. A lawyer for the firm, Liliana Bakayoko, denied any involvement in the trafficking.
On Saturday, India's embassy in France said its staff is stationed at the airport near Paris to ensure the welfare of Indian nationals after the passengers were detained by French authorities over suspected “human trafficking”.
In an updated message on social media on Saturday evening, the embassy thanked the French authorities for working over the long Christmas holiday weekend in pursuit of an early resolution of the situation.
The Indian Embassy in a post on its official X handle said, “Continue to work with the French Gov for the welfare of the Indians currently at the Varty airport, 150 km East of Paris, & for early resolution of the situation.”
A partner company that chartered the plane was responsible for verifying the identity documents of each passenger, and communicated the passengers' passport information to the airline 48 hours before the flight, Bakayoko said.
Human trafficking carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in France.
