Unaccompanied minors of India on plane held in France over suspected trafficking

Thirteen unaccompanied minors are among the more than 300 Indian passengers of a Nicaragua-bound plane held in France over suspected human trafficking, authorities told AFP on Saturday.

The Airbus A340 has been held at Vatry airport, 150 kilometres (95 miles) east of Paris, since arriving from Dubai on Thursday following an anonymous tip-off that it was carrying potential victims of human trafficking.

The civilian protection unit of the Marne department said the plane was carrying 13 unaccompanied minors as well as accompanied minors, with their ages ranging from 21 months to 17 years.

The 303 passengers of the flight operated by Romanian company Legend Airlines were still in the airport’s entrance hall on Saturday morning, an AFP reporter saw.

Tarpaulin covered the entrance hall’s glass exterior and nearby administrative buildings, while police and gendarmes prevented access.

Two passengers were in custody on Friday as part of the investigation.

Liliana Bakayoko, a lawyer for the airline, said all crew members had been questioned and allowed to leave.