Seven migrant workers held captive by alleged job racket in Kochi rescued

The Cheranalloor constabulary connected Friday (June 12, 2026) rescued 7 migrant workers who had been confined to a rented gathering connected Mundiath Road adjacent Cheranalloor by an alleged inter-State occupation racket. The constabulary arrested a West Bengal native, Abdul Rahim, successful transportation with the incident, portion astatine slightest 11 others allegedly progressive successful the racket are reportedly connected the run.

Rahim, a autochthonal of Siliguri, was arrested from the premises of Ernakulam Junction railway station. The victims, who are from Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka, were recovered successful a frail condition, the constabulary said.

According to the police, the accused had collected ₹30 lakh each from the victims, each of whom had lone school-level education, aft promising to facilitate their migration to Canada. The victims were past brought to Kochi and allegedly held captive successful a rented building. The accused besides made the victims grounds videos to person their families that they had reached Canada. The videos were filmed by making the victims basal successful beforehand of life-size flex boards displaying images of Canadian locations, the constabulary said.

The constabulary acted connected a tip-off aft 1 of the victims managed to flight from the rented house. Around 11 members of the racket fled with the wealth collected from the victims aft sensing danger, the constabulary said.

The constabulary besides recovered the victims’ mobile phones and passports and seized astir ₹1 lakh successful currency from Rahim. He was produced earlier a magistrate tribunal connected Friday and remanded to judicial custody. Efforts person been intensified to hint the remaining accused. Investigators fishy that the radical whitethorn person been progressive successful akin occupation frauds successful different States.

The rescue cognition and the apprehension were carried retired by a squad led by Inspector Jayashankar nether the absorption of Ernakulam Central Assistant Commissioner of Police Premanand Krishnan.