Jalandhar, July 6 -- A harrowing tale of illegal immigration has come to light as five youths - four from Punjab and one from Haryana - attempting to reach the United States through the notorious "donkey route", fell victim to brutal torture at the hands of human traffickers in Colombia.

The ordeal surfaced after the family of Balwinder Singh (25) from a village in Kapurthala district filed a complaint with local authorities, accusing four travel agents of duping them of Rs.28 lakh under the pretext of facilitating legal travel to the US.

'Third-degree torture in jungles'

According to the family, Balwinder was abducted by a gang known as "donkers", which operates in the jungles of Panama and Colombia, in February 2025. The gang alleged...