Eight Bangladeshis, all transgenders, held for illegal stay in Mumbai

The Shivaji Nagar police in Govandi have arrested eight Bangladeshi nationals all transgenders for allegedly residing illegally in India According to the police all of them had been living in Rafiq Nagar Shivaji Nagar without valid documentation for more than five yearsThe police stated that the accused had been working as performers dance artists Additionally they were allegedly involved in prostitution cheating and defrauding peopleldquoTheir main areas were Chedda Nagar Junction and SionPanvel Road near Vashi Naka mostly during the night Several cases of cheating were reported by individuals who had interactions with the accused They would approach customers under the pretext of spending a night together and then loot themrdquo a police officer said adding that many victims refrain from reporting such crimes due to social taboosAccording to police sources the accused entered India illegally through an agent ldquoThe agent was previously arrested by the Vikhroli police and had disclosed details about the method of entry revealing that more than 120 individuals were brought to different cities across India A significant number of them settled in Mumbai and neighboring areas due to better business prospectsrdquo a source saidThe arrests followed a tipoff received by the AntiTerrorism Cell ATC of the Shivaji Nagar police regarding illegal residents in their jurisdiction Assistant Police Inspector API Vikrant Shinde led the operation along with his team raiding settlements and bars on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday which led to the arrestsThe arrested individuals have been identified asBaisakhi Mohammad Khan 24 from DhakaMohammad Ridoy Pakhi 25 from KishoreganjMaruf Dhali 18 from DhakaShantakant Khan 20 from DhakaBarsha Khan 22 from NarayanganjMohammad Afzal Hussain 22 from KishoreganjMizanur Kolil 21 from KishoreganjShahadad Amir Khan 20 from Narayanganj BangladeshMumbai police arrested eight Bangladeshi nationals all transgenders for illegally residing in Rafiq Nagar Govandi for over five years They allegedly engaged in performing arts prostitution and fraud Using fake documents they blended into society but were traced throughhellip pictwittercomve8Ibtgivwmdash Mid Day mid_day March 27 2025Police added that all the accused had obtained fraudulent documents to falsely claim Indian citizenship However through technical investigation officers traced their digital footprints which revealed their connections to Bangladesh where their families resideldquoThey had changed their names identities and in some instances even their genders They appeared no different from other citizens However certain mobile applications they used to send money to their families helped us trace them through technical investigationrdquo a police source saidAll the accused have been remanded to police custody and are being interrogated ldquoThe investigation will focus on identifying others who entered India with them and those who assisted them in acquiring identity documents in the city or elsewhererdquo an official confirmed