Dunkey route case: Travel agent Tarun Khosla arrested

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Jalandhar Zonal Office, arrested Delhi-based ticketing and travel agent Tarun Khosla on October 23, 2026, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with an illegal immigration network known as the ‘Dunkey Route’. A Special PMLA Court remanded him to ED custody until October 30, 2026. The case follows the deportation of more than 300 Indian nationals from the United States in February 2025, after they entered the country illegally through the Mexico border.

The investigation commenced after Punjab and Haryana Police registered multiple FIRs under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (formerly the Indian Penal Code), and the Emigration Act, 1983.

ED findings indicate that agents and intermediaries induced people seeking to travel to the United States with false assurances that they could do so through legal channels. Instead, the individuals were routed through the ‘Dunkey Route’, illegal and dangerous passages across South and Central American countries, facilitated by local “donkers” and mafia networks. They were charged between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 60 lakh for these journeys.

Searches conducted on July 9 and 11, 2025, at 19 locations resulted in the seizure of incriminating documents, records, digital devices, and other materials, including bogus immigration and visa stamps for Nicaragua and Ethiopia. On December 15, 2025, the ED provisionally attached movable and immovable properties valued at approximately Rs 5.41 crore. These included agricultural land, residential and commercial premises, and bank account balances identified as proceeds of crime generated by agents involved in the racket.

Subsequent searches conducted on December 18 and 19, 2025, at locations across Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi led to the recovery of Rs 4.62 crore in cash, gold bars and coins weighing approximately 5.9 kg, and silver bars weighing 313 kg. The items had a combined estimated value of Rs 19.14 crore and were recovered from premises associated with Tarun Khosla. Investigators also seized incriminating documents, digital devices, more than 50 original passports belonging to third parties, diaries, transaction records, property documents, and additional digital devices from other locations.

The investigation found that Tarun Khosla was a key facilitator in the Dunkey Route network. He collected passports and money from multiple agents in Punjab and Haryana who recruited people seeking to travel to the United States, and received these items in Delhi. He arranged visas and air tickets for transit through South America, including Guyana, Suriname, Ecuador, and El Salvador. He also facilitated onward movement toward the US border through illegal and dangerous routes. Khosla played a central role in determining routes and prices for each person travelling through the “Dunkey Route.”

The routes included air travel to El Salvador, followed by road travel through Mexico to Tijuana for entry into the United States, at a cost of approximately Rs 35-Rs 40 lakh per person; travel via Dubai or Addis Ababa to Guyana, followed by a road journey through Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, the Panama jungle, Guatemala, Mexico, and Tijuana, at a cost of approximately Rs 25-Rs 30 lakh per person; and longer itineraries described by deportees that passed through Guyana, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico before reaching the US border.

Data retrieved from seized mobile phones revealed incriminating chats indicating that Khosla acted as a fixer for immigration clearances. His communications with international contacts showed coordination on the ground at foreign airports, including collecting money for immigration clearance, arranging tickets, handling passengers, and making payments in US dollars. The records documented instructions concerning “OK to Board” endorsements and coordination with airline and immigration personnel. Khosla arranged visa clearances for South American countries, fake or forged yellow fever vaccination certificates, ticket bookings, and liaison with donkers.

Investigators also recovered chats with foreign donkers identified as “Mike” in Mexico, “Ali” in Brazil, and “Kristi” in Mexico, who managed donkers involved in border crossings and related payments.

Bank records for his proprietorship, M/s BJ International, showed cash deposits totalling Rs 30.38 crore across 414 cash-credit transactions during the financial years 2022-23 to 2024-25. The investigation has revealed a well-organised network that coordinated end-to-end operations, lured members of the public, and earned substantial commissions over several years. Further investigation is ongoing.