US jails Bangladeshi man for human trafficking charges

A Bangladeshi man formerly residing in Mexico has been sentenced to 46 months in prison over his ties to a human trafficking ring that smuggled people to the United States.

According to the plea agreement, Moktar Hossain admitted that from March 2017 to August 2018, he conspired to smuggle Bangladeshi nationals to the US across the Texas border in exchange for money, according to a statement from the US Embassy in Dhaka.

The jail term will be followed by three years of supervised release.

Hossain operated out of Monterrey, Mexico, where he maintained a hotel that housed aliens on their way to the US. He paid drivers to transport the aliens to the US border, and instructed them on how to cross the Rio Grande river, the statement read.

“The defendant was a key player in an organised smuggling network that operated for profit and preyed on Bangladeshi nationals who wanted to enter the US illegally,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General David P Burns of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

 “This sentence serves as a clear deterrent to participants of such transnational criminal organisations who seek to undermine the security of our borders by illegally facilitating the travel of foreigners into the United States for a financial gain.”