Indian plane passengers held in France probe set to leave; no case of human trafficking detected

A man enters the plane grounded by police at the Vatry airport , Monday, Dec. 25, 2023 in Vatry, eastern France. A charter plane grounded in France for a human trafficking investigation is scheduled to leave Monday for India, after an exceptional holiday ordeal that left some 300 Indians en route for Central America blocked inside a rural French airport for four days. - AP

VATRY, France (AFP): A plane with 303 Indian passengers detained near Paris over suspicions of human trafficking was due to leave Monday for Mumbai, French judicial officials said.

The Nicaragua-bound Airbus A340 and its Indian passengers was held at Vatry airport, 150 kilometres (95 miles) east of Paris, when it arrived Thursday from Dubai for refuelling, after an anonymous tip-off that it was carrying potential victims of human trafficking.