Fake certificate racket unearthed in AP

Hyderabad, Sep 25 (UNI) Sleuths of the Commissioner's Task Force, Central Zone, had unearthed a fake certificate racket with the arrest of eight people, including two Sudan nationals.

Talking to newspersons here, Deputy Commissioner of Police V B Kamalasan Reddy said, on a tip off, eight, including the kingpin and Moghal College coordinator Mohammad Tousif, Sudan nationals Sabari Elbari and Abdel Maaniem, were nabbed yesterday for preparing and circulating bogus educational certificates of various universities in the country.

As many as 500 fake certificates, five rubber stamps, two computer systems, two passports and one mobile phone were seized from them, he added.

The Sudanese national Sabari, who had come on a student visa in 2001, was staying illegally in the country after his visa expired and was arranging fake certificates for interested students from Sudan, Ethiopia, Yemen and Somalia.

The racket came to light after the embassy officials referred the fake certificates from Bundelkhand University to Jhansi for verification, Mr Reddy said, adding the kingpin also issued bogus admission letters, bonafide certificates to foreign students and also residential permits to continue in Hyderabad.

Abdel Naiem, who had come to India thrice on a tourist visa between 2006 and 2008, had procured fictitious B Tech engineering certificate of Rajasthan Vidyapeeth by paying Rs 70,000 to the main accused.

The arrested included, Syed Lataf Ali, hailing from Nanded in Maharashtra, Khaja Fayaq Ali, Mohd Sameer Ahmed, Mohd Mujtab Ali, all hailing from Nalgonda district, he added.

The modus operandi of the accused was to procure fictitious certificates from Raipur, Salem, Udaipur and Jhansi Universities for students, who failed to get through by taking Rs 30,000 to Rs 35,000 from them for degree certificates and Rs 70,000 to Rs 80,000 for Post Graduation certificates.

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