The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Immigration racket busted

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Sunday, Mar 22, 2009
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Immigration racket busted

Staff Reporter

Accused used to obtain business visas to America presenting fictitious documents

HYDERABAD: A racket of obtaining business visas to America by presenting fictitious documents and becoming illegal immigrants by remaining there was busted by Hyderabad police with the arrest of a person on Saturday.

The accused, Arslan Farooqi from Tolichowki in city, was planning to send seven more persons to America in this fashion, Hyderabad Detective Department DCP R.S. Praveen Kumar told a press conference.

A complaint lodged by a software company in whose name a fictitious document was prepared led the police to Farooqi.

He used to create e-mail addresses in the names of candidates approaching him for visas by tagging names of reputed software companies in India.

Sending invitations

This he did to create an impression that the candidates were employees of those companies. Farooqi used to browse Internet, download content from the websites of various multi-national firms, send e-mails in the names of the visa seekers requesting them to send invitations to attend exhibitions in America.

He also used to make fake letterheads in the names of Indian companies and visiting cards, present them in American consulate along with the invitations received from foreign companies and secure business visas.

Overstaying

“Even the candidates who secured the visas knew that he was getting them fraudulently,” the DCP explained. As per the plan, the persons who got the business visas did not return to India after the stipulated period.

They are overstaying in America and becoming illegal immigrants.

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