Punjab: Kapurthala man abducted by traffickers in Colombia returns home
Balwinder had spent ₹28 lakh to reach the United States through a donkey route, but his dream was short-lived after he was abducted by the traffickers in February this year
Balwinder Singh, 25, from Kapurthala’s Baaz village, who was stuck in Colombia for over six months after being ‘abducted’ by human trafficking conduits, returned to India and reached his village on Thursday.
Balwinder had spent ₹28 lakh to reach the United States through a donkey route, but his dream was short-lived after he was abducted by the traffickers in February this year.
He came to meet AAP Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal at Sultanpur Lodhi, who took up his issue with the ministry of external affairs.
Narrating his ordeal, Balwinder said it was a harrowing experience as he, along with his companions, were slashed with blades, while another was stripped naked and burned with molten plastic and heated rods.
“The traffickers filmed these acts of brutality and sent the videos to the victims’ families in India to demand ransom,” he said.
He added that the agents routed him from Delhi to Mumbai, then through the Netherlands, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Brazil. From there, he was taken through Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador, eventually ending up in Colombia’s forests, where he was handed over to the traffickers.
“Upon arrival, they confiscated our passports and phone and locked us in a room. Dozens of other young men from Punjab, Haryana, and various countries were also imprisoned in groups,” he said, adding that he somehow managed to escape from their net and reached a safe place in Colombia.
{{/usCountry}}“Upon arrival, they confiscated our passports and phone and locked us in a room. Dozens of other young men from Punjab, Haryana, and various countries were also imprisoned in groups,” he said, adding that he somehow managed to escape from their net and reached a safe place in Colombia.
{{/usCountry}}His family first received a torture video on February 13, after which the abductors demanded a large sum of money. “Despite multiple ransom threats, my family refused to pay,” he said. On May 29, Balwinder finally contacted his family and recounted his escape.
