Sex trade: Syrian among 8 rescued

Racket was being run in Andheri guesthouse, manager booked

Eight women were rescued from a sex racket being run in a guesthouse in Andheri area, one of whom was a 28-year-old Syrian citizen, who had been in Mumbai for a month on a tourist visa. Two of these women are from villages in the north-east states of India and had come to Mumbai in search of a job but were pushed into the flesh trade.

James Varghese (37) from NGO Indian Rescue Mission had approached joint commissioner of police, law and order, Deven Bharti with information that a sex racket was being run in a guesthouse next to Miraj hotel on the Andheri-Kurla road in the jurisdiction of Sahar police. Mr Varghese had visited the Miraj hotel and learnt from sources that a person was running a sex racket there.

Acting on the information, a decoy customer was sent to the guest ouse and the allegations were found to be true. A special team under the supervision of DCP, Zone VIII, Virendra Mishra and led by police inspector Mahadeo Nimbalkar of Vile Parle police station then raided the guesthouse at 11.45 pm arresting the guesthouse’s manager Bhagirat Janki Mandal (49) and rescuing the eight women, including the Syrian national and two women from north-east India.

Mandal is a resident of Sai Nivas in Nalasopara. He has been booked under section 370 (3) of IPC and section 3, 4 and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956. The accused was produced before a court and remanded in police custody till December 15. All the women have been sent to a shelter home. “We will find out if Mandal has a prior criminal record. The Syrian national can’t speak our language. We will record her statements and find out how she got trapped in the sex racket,” said senior inspector Prashant Marde of the Sahar police.