Representative image (envato elements)

Updated on Jan 7, at 1.50 p.m.

During the bail hearing for the accused individuals, CID (crime) made a startling disclosure in court, revealing that the accused had not obtained official permission to operate as an immigration consultancy. Furthermore, the accused failed to produce a registration certificate for the business. The main perpetrators, Deepak Patel and Snehal Patel, had their bail plea rejected by Additional Sessions Judge JM Brahmabhat, who made this decision based on the gravity of the situation.

Additional public prosecutor Sudhir Brahmabhat vehemently opposed the bail application, highlighting that the accused had established an office in front of Passport Seva Kendra at Vijay Char Rasta, using it to fraudulently issue work permits, student visas, and visitor visas. The accused resorted to creating fake experience letters and certificates from various hotels and companies, as well as from universities like Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj University of Kanpur, William Carey University of Meghalaya, and Shanghai International University. Exploiting unsuspecting individuals, including students, they extorted large sums of money under the false pretense of facilitating visas from countries such as the USA, UK, and Canada.

The accused also engaged in the sale of counterfeit marksheets to students and citizens, charging exorbitant amounts, often exceeding two lakhs, for various visas and legitimate employment opportunities. The investigation remains ongoing and is at a critical stage. Given that several key suspects in the scam are still at large, it is imperative to apprehend them to connect the missing pieces of this shocking case. In light of the serious nature of this anti-educational and anti-social crime, the accused cannot be granted bail under any circumstances. Additional Sessions Judge JM Brahmabhat concurred with the government’s arguments, ultimately rejecting the bail applications of Deepak Patel and Snehal Patel.

Updated on Dec 28, 2023 at 11.15 a.m.

The CID (crime) raids in Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, and Vadodara have led to five charges booked so far. This time, Gandhinagar’s Future Planning Visa Consultancy was under the radar of CID (crime). A complaint was lodged against operators including Avkash Chaudhary, Sahil Patel, and Krunal Varia for fabricating bank account statements for clients.

After the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) submitted a report on mobile phones, laptops, hard discs, and pen drives , it was revealed that the accused were creating fake bank statements for prominent banks, including ICICI Bank, SBI, and IndusInd Bank.

They used to charge up to ₹1 lakh for forging the visa documents.

Updated on Dec 26, 2023 at 11.30 a.m.

One more visa consultancy office in Ahmedabad comes under the radar of CID (crime). Laxmi Overseas Consultancy near AEC Char Rasta in Ahmedabad was raided on Dec 25.

The police booked Dinesh Badlaniya, an operator at Laxmi Overseas Consultancy, for forged documents.

In the search operation, seven mobile phones, three laptops, and five hard discs were seized. Fake experience letters from Godhra-based Infratech, VFS Global, were found, and fake result copies and mark sheets were also seized.

As the CID (crime) raids continued in the city, two more from a visa consultancy were arrested.

Out Source India (OSI), a student visa and immigration consultancy on Vijay Cross Roads was raided, where several documents, including fake results of students, were recovered.

Deepak Patel, owner of OSI, and his partner Snehal Patel were booked for their illegal business, and an investigation is likely to ensue in their business.

Fake results from Osmania University of Hyderabad, Chhattisgarh University, UP’s Monad University, and Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University of Kanpur were seized by the police.

Laptops, mobile devices, and other documents were also seized, based on which police interrogated Deepak and his partner Snehal.

The interrogation revealed that Sanand-based Anil Mishra and Amrindra Puri from Delhi were involved in providing fake results for the firm. In return, they used to get ₹10,000 to ₹20,000. Deepak used to earn ₹60,000 to ₹1.25 lakh for providing fake university results for his clients.

After CID (crime) held two from a consultancy in Ahmedabad, the authority raided Gandhinagar’s Sargasan-based visa consultancy on Dec 20.

During the raid, two computers, one laptop, and documents, including fake marksheets, were seized. The police also found forged certificates purportedly issued by Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MSUB).

A complaint was registered against Ankit Patel, the owner of the consultancy named Empire Overseas Services, and manager Vishal Shah.

On the other hand, the SIT is investigating the names of parents and students who paid for the forged documents through the found copies.

The team will trace the addresses of clients and register complaints against them.

Updated on Dec 21, 2023 at 11.11 a.m.

The CID (crime) has formed a special investigation team (SIT) to further probe consultancies that cater to illegal visas.

On the other hand, operators Jigar Shukla and Nirav Mehta of CG Road-based  ‘Hightech Education’ are on a two-day remand.

Locations across Ahmedabad were raided by CID last week, where documents and electronics were seized to be scrutinised.

The detective police inspector of CID (crime) JG Amin and his team raided ‘Hightech Education’ located at the Samarth complex on CG Road on Dec 16.

A complaint was registered against operators Jigar Shukla and Nirav Mehta for forging documents for the aspirants of student visas.

As per the complaint, the accused forged marksheets, degree certificates, experience certificates, and bank statements for their clients of work permits and student visas to facilitate illegal immigration to the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.

During the investigation, forged documents were seized, including fake salary slips of different companies, letterheads, copies of the SSC mark sheet, a civil engineering student’s marksheet of Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University in Chhattisgarh, and fake results of the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language).

During the investigation, ₹53,860 was also found in the drawer of Shukla’s office.

Updated on Dec 17, 2023 at 5.24 p.m.

Locations across Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Gandhinagar were raided by CID crime, resulting in the seizure of 37 passports, 182 passport copies, 79 mark sheets, 53 electronic gadgets, and ₹5.5 lakh of cash from these locations.

The documents and electronics will be scrutinised by the forensic immigration experts and the CID, and a report will be prepared. If proven, complaints will be registered in the zonal CID offices of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Gandhinagar against the accused.

The initiation was taken in the wake of the scams worth lakhs of rupees in Gujarat, which targeted the people willing to go and settle abroad. The agents were scamming people by promising them a visa or permanent residency in countries like the USA, Canada, and the UK, based on passports and fake documents.

Authorities are positive about important revelations in the case based on the documents confiscated, and the raid is likely to continue in the coming days, digging deeper into such scams.

17 teams, led by CID crime’s additional director general of police (DGP) Dr Rajkumar Pandian along with one superintendent of police (SP), 7 deputy superintendent of police (DySP), and other officials, conducted the raids. 

Only the top officials of the CID crime were briefed about the raids, in the afternoon of Dec 15.

A top official stated they had some leads for the last six months, indicating an indirect involvement of some agents who promised people to send abroad on the basis of bogus documents. On the basis of this, a list of agents was prepared and raids were carried out.

Apart from these three cities, some of the agents in Mehsana are also believed to be on CID crime’s radar. Reports suggest that many such agents have gone underground in the wake of these raids.

For more such updates and news on the go, follow us on Instagram | YouTube | Facebook