Another navy officer and 3 others arrested in fake visa scam

On Sunday, both were produced in court and remanded in police custody until July 5.

All the accused have been charged under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Passport Act for cheating and forgery. (Archive photo)

The Crime Intelligence Unit of the Mumbai crime branch, probing a fake visa racket allegedly run by navy officers, arrested four people, including another navy officer, on Saturday and Sunday. The racket, allegedly involved sending people to South Korea on forged documents, made them tear up their visa papers upon arrival and apply for asylum, followed by citizenship.

According to the crime branch, Second Lieutenant Braham Jyoti, posted at INS Shivaji Lonavla, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the missile, was arrested along with his associate Simran Teji.

On Sunday, both were brought before a judge and remanded in police custody until July 5.

Sources said Simran allegedly opened a bank account in her mother’s name and linked it to Braham Jyoti’s mobile number. Braham used the account for transactions related to the alleged fraud. Sources said that around ₹25-30 lakh was deposited in the said bank account. The crime branch also arrested suspects Deepak Dogra and Ravi Kumar from Jammu and Kashmir, who are being taken to Mumbai.

“Ravi Kumar is a beneficiary who wanted to travel to South Korea on a visa obtained by submitting fake documents. Deepak Dogra was apparently monitoring the entire operation and identifying potential targets who wanted to travel abroad on work visas,” said crime branch officials.

All the accused have been charged under relevant sections of the IPC and the Passport Act for cheating and forgery.

First upload: Jul 1, 2024 at 02:29 IST