France has grounded a charter flight headed to Nicaragua carrying 303 Indian passengers, and a judicial investigation into the conditions and purposes of the trip has been launched, local officials in the eastern Marne region said on Friday.

A unit specialising in organised crime is investigating suspicions of human trafficking and arrested two people for questioning, the Paris public prosecution office said, adding that authorities had been tipped off by an anonymous informant.

French authorities informed us of a plane w/ 303 people, mostly Indian origin, from Dubai to Nicaragua detained on a technical halt at a French airport. Embassy team has reached & obtained consular access. We are investigating the situation, also ensuring wellbeing of passengers.

— India in France (@IndiaembFrance) December 22, 2023

“The reception hall at Vatry airport was transformed into a waiting area with individual beds to provide passengers with the best possible reception conditions,” the prefect’s office said. The Indian foreign ministry did not immediately reply to Reuters request for comment.