Visa scam: 15,000 fake agents mushroom in AP, Telangana

Bengaluru, Dec 10: For many going abroad to work is everything and taking advantage of this scenario are 15,000 travel agents who run a racket in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in which fake visas are provided.

The number of gullible persons falling trap to such fake agents is on the rise and a probe by the Cyberabad police has unearthed a major fake visa scam.

Over the past one year the number of persons complaining about being duped had increased. This led the police to set up a special team to probe into the issue and during investigations it was found that 15,000 fake agents had mushroomed in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Fake agent, fake visa

A fake agent will always get you a fake visa. People seeking out visas do not check the antecedents of these agents and in the bargain end up being duped.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Shamshabad who is part of this important probe says that it is not just fake visas, but these agents also assure of jobs in various countries such as Kuwait, Dubai and Saudi Arabia.

There are several persons who are in desperate need of livelihood who fall trap to such agents. Unlike the registered agents, these fake ones also assure of jobs.

Several persons have raised loans from private money lenders paying huge sums of interest in order to pay these agents. Once the payment is done, a visa is given to these persons and then the agent disappears.
These persons are left with nothing.

The pressure from the money lender to repay the amount coupled with the lack of a job is what these persons cheated by the fake agents end up getting, police officials part of the probe state.

The police say that there were scores of complaints that they were getting both from the people as well as the immigration department which led to the institution of the probe.

While probing the matter, it was found that these agents operated as a part of a network or module. They roots were found in places such as Kadapa, Nellore, East and West Godavari.

The police have been carrying out arrests and say that they would try to ensure that the money charged by these agents is recovered and handed back to the people. Further the police have also urged the people to exercise caution and only approach agents with verified antecedents.

OneIndia News