New Delhi, July 26 (IANS) Ten people, including eight Bangladeshi nationals, have been arrested in the capital for helping people from Bangladesh illegally immigrate to Greece and other European countries via Turkey, police said Sunday.
The Special Operations Squad (SOS) of Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has arrested Akram Ali, Mohammad Jahinuddin alias Badul, Kadir Miyan, Iliyas, Dipankar Day, Hayder Ali, Mohammad Shahriar Mamun, Mohammad Shah Alam Sheikh, Mohammad Helaluddin and S.M. Ibrahim in the last three days.

Police said a large number of forged documents, tampered passports and stamps of different government authorities have been recovered from them.

“The gang had a unique modus operandi and in the past eight months they sent a large number of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants to various European countries. From each illegal immigrant, they charged Rs.600,000-700,000,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Neeraj Thakur.

He said Bangladeshis wishing to illegally immigrate to Europe would first contact a travel agent, who was part of the racket, in Bangladesh. This gang would then affix a forged Turkish visa on the genuine Bangladeshi passports and send the applicants to their counterparts in Delhi.

Here, their accommodation was arranged in rented rooms and their photographs taken. In the meantime genuine Turkish visas were obtained on passports issued in the name of Indian nationals.

“Then as per the age and description, the photograph of the Bangladeshi national was pasted on the Indian passport, which already had a genuine Turkish visa. This Indian passport would then be affixed with forged departure stamps of immigration authorities of Delhi,” Thakur said.

“The Bangladeshi national would then depart as a Bangladeshi passenger from the Delhi airport on the basis of genuine Bangladeshi passport carrying the forged Turkey visa. The forged Turkey visa would escape detection by Indian officials as genuine Bangladeshi passports were used,” he added.

Next, to avoid detection of the forged Turkish visa at the Istanbul airport, the Indian passport with the genuine Turkish visa but forged departure stamps was produced. “At this stage, it was difficult for Turkish authorities to detect the fraud because the Bangladeshi national was using a genuine Indian passport with a genuine Turkish visa.”

Police said local agents in Turkey, also part of this racket, would now collect these passengers from the airports and send them to Greece either by road or by boat. As soon as the illegal immigrant got entry into Greece, he got a temporary visa on the basis of which he would start working there.

Thakur said Mohammad Jahinuddin alias Badul, a Bangladeshi national staying illegally in India, and Ali, who runs a travel agency Symphony Travels in Nizammudin area here, were the key accused in the case. Badul has been deported twice by Turkish authorities for trying to reach Greece, police said.

“Badul revealed during interrogation that he used to obtain Indian passports carrying genuine Turkey visas through a Mumbai resident named Vikram Sandhu. These passports were further forwarded to S.M. Ibrahim in Chennai for changing the photograph. Ibrahim has also been arrested,” Thakur added.