RANCHI: In a major breakthrough, Jharkhand Police have busted an international human trafficking network that allegedly duped several people, promising them illegal entry into the United States via the notorious ‘donkey route’. The operation led to the arrest of five individuals, including the alleged mastermind, after a survivor of the trafficking came forward with a complaint.
‘Donkey route’ refers to an illegal and risky method of immigration, particularly from India to developed countries like the UK, US, or Canada, often facilitated by unscrupulous travel agents. It involves using unofficial or convoluted pathways, sometimes involving long and dangerous journeys, to bypass legal immigration procedures.
According to an official communique from Jharkhand Police, Sonu Kumar, a resident of Bharajo under Tatijharia Police Station, had filed a detailed complaint on July 30, 2025, exposing a transnational trafficking conspiracy.
According to Sonu Kumar, Uday Kumar Kushwaha, a native of the same village and reportedly residing in the US for over 45 years, lured him by promising him a job in America.
“In 2024, Kumar was allegedly sent to Brazil on forged documents, where he fell into the hands of the so-called ‘donkey mafia’. Two other victims — Bikash Kumar and Pintu Kumar — were reportedly trafficked similarly, travelling from Delhi to Brazil on separate dates,” stated the official communique.
According to the complaint lodged at Tatijharia Police Station, once in Brazil, the victims were handed over to an international smuggling network. The traffickers attempted to illegally move them across multiple countries — Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, and Guatemala — en route to the United States by land and river.
“Sonu Kumar remained in the custody of traffickers for 50 days. During this period, the accused allegedly extorted approximately Rs 45 lakh from Kumar’s family. His father, under pressure, reportedly sold ancestral property and transferred the funds through various means to associates of Uday Kumar,” stated the official communique.
The victim eventually reached San Diego via Mexico City but was apprehended at the US border and held at a detention centre for nearly four months, and was finally deported to India in March 2025, it said.
After returning home, Sonu’s attempts to recover the extorted money were allegedly met with threats and physical assault by Uday Kumar and his brother Chohan Prasad. Fearing for his life, Sonu Kumar lodged a formal complaint, leading to FIR No. 32/25 dated 31/07/2025 at Tatijharia Police Station under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Later, following a direction from the Hazaribagh Superintendent of Police, a special task force led by Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Bishrugarh, was constituted and the five accused persons were arrested.
During the investigation, police have uncovered a list of individuals allegedly trafficked to the US via the ‘donkey route’.