Indian passenger, 24, with ties to human trafficking disguises himself as senior citizen in attempt to board Canada-bound flight
A 24-year-old Indian man with ties to human trafficking disguised himself as a senior citizen in an attempt to board a Canada-bound flight, but his youthful characteristics didn’t match the older man he claimed to be.
Officials at the Indira Gandhi International Airport detained Guru Sewak Singh after they noticed multiple discrepancies in his appearance.
“Vigilant CISF personnel intercepted a passenger bound for Canada involved in human trafficking & impersonation,” the India’s Central Industrial Security Force said on X. “The pax attempted to travel by impersonating an aged person and using false documents.”
Singh, who was heading for an Air Canada flight, had dyed his facial hair white as he tried to replicate the passport photo of Rashvindar Singh Sahota, a 67-year-old from Punjab.
Along with dyeing his hair, Singh sported a pair of glasses, but his skin texture and youthful-sounding voice were a dead giveaway to airport officials, according to Now Toronto.
After comparing Sahota’s passport to Singh’s appearance, security officials had a closer look at the impersonator and realized he had colored his hair and was only wearing the glasses to appear older.
During an interrogation, the con artist shared his real name and provided a digital copy of his real passport, the Times of India reported.
Singh and his belongings were handed over to the Delhi police for further legal action, according to the outlet.
In 2019, a 32-year-old man dressed himself up like a white-haired, wheelchair-bound senior in his 80s as he tried to board a New York-bound flight at the same Delhi airport.
Jayesh Patel wheeled his way into Indira Gandhi International Airport, refusing to be frisked because he claimed to be too frail to stand, according to the CISF.
He presented a passport with the name Amrik Singh and a January 1938 birthdate — which would make him 81.
But security at the Delhi airport grew instantly suspicious because Singh refused to make eye contact — and, even with his hair and beard dyed white, he clearly did not match the age on his fake ID, according to local reports.
“CISF was suspicious about him as his voice didn’t match his age. Despite gray hair, his skin seemed to be quite young as there were hardly any wrinkles on his face,” the spokesperson told NDTV
