Agartala: Border Security Force (BSF) apprehended a Cameroon national while illegally trying to enter Indian territory through the Tripura border. The pre-dawn operation on the India-Bangladesh border has ended with the arrest of a foreign national trying to slip into the country illegally, crossing the fence from the Bangladesh side.
The Border Security Force intercepted 41-year-old Peters Molla, a citizen of Cameroon, as he allegedly scaled the barbed-wire fence near the Ballamukha border in South Tripura’s Belonia subdivision. A BSF official said that the patrolling team intercepted some illegal movements in the area and launched an operation immediately. Sharp-eyed jawans from the BSF’s 43rd Battalion caught him in the act in the early hours of Thursday, in the Ishan Chandranagar Gram Panchayat area.
He was warned by the BSF team to surrender. Security personnel swiftly took him into custody and marched him straight to the 43rd Battalion’s Border Outpost for questioning.
After completing the paperwork, the BSF handed him over to Belonia Police Station, where officers immediately booked him for illegal entry into India.
Molla was produced before the Belonia court soon after. Police told the court that they needed him in custody for further investigation — his real motive for crossing the border, and how he even managed to travel this far is a matter of thorough investigation. The court agreed, granting police three days of custodial remand.
“Why the Cameroon national crossed into the Indian side from Bangladesh and who on the other side helped him to cross the border needs to be verified. It is a serious matter of security concern”, said a top police official.
Tripura police have initiated an investigation. How did a man from Cameroon end up at a remote border crossing in Tripura? Did he have help from smugglers or a cross-border network? What he was actually trying to do in India is under investigation. Police haven’t ruled anything out. They’re digging into whether this could be tied to human trafficking, organised illegal migration rackets, or something more sinister.
Officials say the interrogation is intense and ongoing, with investigators chasing every possible lead. The BSF and Tripura Police are working hand in hand, determined to expose anyone who may have helped orchestrate this attempted infiltration.
