Visa scam: Mangaluru Police arrest two more from Maharashtra; 289 job seekers duped of Rs 4.5 crore

MANGALURU: The CCB team of Mangaluru City Police has arrested two more persons from Maharashtra in connection with the visa scam involving Hireglow Elegant Overseas International (OPC) Private Limited, which allegedly defrauded nearly 289 overseas job aspirants. Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy said the arrested accused are Dil Shaad Abdul Sathar Khan (45), a resident of Navi Mumbai, and Sahukari Kishore Kumar alias Anil Patel (34), from Dombivli, Thane. Earlier, another accused, Masiulla Atiulla Khan (36) from Mumbai, was arrested in connection with the overseas job recruitment scam reported at Mangaluru East Police Station in May. The accused had opened an office of Hireglow Elegant Overseas International (OPC) Private Limited at Bendoorwell in the city, promising overseas jobs. They allegedly collected nearly Rs 4.5 crore from around 289 people but failed to provide job visas as promised. A case has been registered under Sections 316(2), 318(4), read with 3(5) of the BNS, the Police Commissioner said. Dil Shaad Khan and Anil Patel were produced before court and have been remanded to police custody for further investigation. Meanwhile, Masiulla Atiulla Khan remains in judicial custody. It may be recalled that Lawrence D'Souza, President of the Dakshina Kannada District Congress Labourers' Cell, had earlier demanded a thorough probe into the scam, which affected job seekers from Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, and other parts of South India.

He said many paid between Rs 1.85 lakh and Rs 5 lakh for job placements in countries such as New Zealand, Azerbaijan, and Singapore. Meanwhile, Avaneesh Shukla, Protector of Emigrants (POE) for Karnataka and Goa under the Ministry of External Affairs, visited Mangaluru after receiving credible information about unauthorised overseas job interviews. Following this, the City Police Commissioner suspended two officers with immediate effect for failing to take appropriate legal action against the firm.