Delhi Police busts fake visa racket, arrests three for duping job seekers

New Delhi, Sep 14 (PTI) The Delhi Police on Sunday claimed to have busted a fake visa appointment racket after arresting three men who allegedly duped people seeking jobs overseas by posing as employees of a multinational company that helps travel document applicants.

Police said the trio created a fake website, social media accounts and even used a US-based phone number to convince victims of their authenticity and then extorted lakhs from job seekers while issuing them forged documents.

The accused -- Deepak Pandey (33), Yash Singh (23) and Wasim Akram (25) -- were arrested from the national capital's Zamrudpur area on September 9 following a raid by a team of the Delhi Police's Crime Branch.

In a statement, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Vikram Singh said, "They extorted lakh of rupees from job seekers by issuing forged visa-related documents, employment confirmation letters and appointment slips." The matter came to light after VFS Global, the multinational outsourcing and technology services company for visa and passport applications, lodged a complaint alleging misuse of its name and logo.

It also complained that some people were posing as its staff and using its logo to extort money from visa applicants.

"The gang bought the domain name 'paramountoversease.co.in' in 2021 and falsely linked it to addresses in Nehru Place and Janakpuri to build credibility. They also advertised their services online, misusing the VFS Global brand identity to gain the trust of unsuspecting job seekers," the DCP said.

About the gang's modus operandi, police said the accused would send victims a "document checklist" over social media, giving an impression of authenticity. They then demanded money for medical tests and arranged genuine diagnostic appointments to further reinforce the illusion.

After collecting these charges, the gang would share fake work visa applications, employment confirmation letters and job offers with victims. In the final phase, they sent the victims fake immigration approvals, tax documents and police clearance application forms to extract more money.

"The victims were made to pay for consultancy charges, visa application fees, medical testing and appointment booking, believing they were dealing with authorised representatives of VFS Global.

"One of the complainants, Atul Kumar Takle, was cheated of Rs 3.16 lakh. Investigators identified multiple victims, including foreign job seekers who had reached out to the fake consultants," the DCP added.

During the probe, police traced several bank accounts, SIM cards, email IDs and IP addresses used by the accused. It revealed that they used tools to mask their locations while communicating with victims via US-based numbers and fake email accounts.

During the raid at Zamrudpur, the team also recovered laptops, mobile phones, forged documents, software used for document fabrication and bank accounts linked to the fraudulent transactions.

"The confessional statements of Deepak Pandey, considered the mastermind, were corroborated with digital forensic evidence, email logs, victim testimonies and financial records, leading to the arrest of the other two," the officer said.

Further investigation is underway to identify more victims and trace the entire money trail. Efforts are also being made to ascertain if additional accomplices were involved. PTI BM BM SHS NSD NSD