Ahmedabad: The Infocity police in Gandhinagar on Saturday registered a complaint of a ₹3.4 crore fraud involving fake UK work permit visas, based on a complaint filed by a visa consultant. The complainant, a 31-year-old who runs a visa consultancy firm in Kudasan, alleged that he was cheated by two persons who promised to arrange UK work permits and jobs for his clients. According to the complaint, the consultant has been in the visa consultancy business since 2018 and employs eight staff members. In 2022, he came into contact with one of the accused, who was running a foreign education loan firm. In June 2025, the latter introduced him to an associate, claiming that the associate had strong connections and could secure UK work permits in sectors such as warehouses, healthcare and restaurants. Believing their claims, the consultant began forwarding applications of his clients to the duo from July 2025 onwards. He transferred funds through bank accounts and made several cash payments. The money was routed to accounts linked to the associate’s contacts. Cash payments were also allegedly made in Surat and at the consultant’s office. In all, the consultant said he handed over documents and money for 33 clients seeking UK work permits. When visas did not arrive within the promised time, he started questioning the accused. To reassure him, the duo allegedly shared Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) documents through WhatsApp. Suspicion grew as the delay continued. On verification, clients found that their applications had either been rejected or were never processed. The consultant then approached several UK-based companies, which confirmed that the CoS documents were fake. When confronted, one of the accused allegedly refused to return the money and claimed to be abroad, while the other distanced himself from the transactions. The complainant stated that ₹1.7 crore was paid to one accused and ₹1.6 crore to the other, amounting to ₹3.4 crore. He submitted bank statements and copies of the alleged forged documents to the police. Infocity police registered an FIR on charges of cheating and forgery under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and have launched a detailed investigation into the case.
