Schengen visa fraud: Grandfather loses life savings of Rs 35 lakh

A 66-year-old man's efforts to fulfill his grandson's dream were in vain when fraudulent visa agents swindled Rs 35 lakh from the grandson, promising a work visa for Greece. Ajeet Singh had raised his grandson, Kanwaljeet, after both of his parents passed away from heart attacks within a few years.

When Kanwaljeet turned 23, Singh sold his agricultural land to fund his grandson's dream of working abroad. However, the youth fell prey to the fraudsters who handed him a fake Schengen visa. The forged papers landed Kanwaljeet in police custody and he was jailed for 20 days before being granted bail. His family eventually had to take a loan to secure his release.

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Kanwaljeet lives in Tarn Taran, a small town in Punjab, with his grandparents and sister. The family's livelihood is entirely dependent on agriculture. The death of his parents left him in the care of his grandparents, and his grandfather became the guardian, shouldering the responsibility of raising Kanwaljeet and his sister.

Kanwaljeet told TOI that he came into contact with the scammers in Jan. "I wanted to go abroad to earn money and improve my family's economic condition," he said. Some of his relatives have gone abroad for a better livelihood, prompting him to decide to go to the US, Kanwaljeet said.

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Having limited financial resources, his grandfather decided to sell his land to fund the move. However, the agents deceived them by providing the fake visa for Greece and instructed Kanwaljeet to first travel to Bangkok, Thailand.

The scammers sent a photo of the visa and told Kanwaljeet to collect the documents at IGI Airport on Nov 21, which he did. However, during security checks, he was told that his visa was fake, leaving him financially drained and emotionally devastated.

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After staying in jail for 20 days, Kanwaljeet got bail on Monday, but his family didn't have money for surety, and they took a loan. Kanwaljeet was finally released two days later on Wednesday. "The cheating broke my family emotionally and economically. My sister's marriage is scheduled in Feb, and I have to sell the remaining land to marry her off. I just hope somehow my money comes back," Kanwaljeet said.

DCP (IGI) Usha Rangnani said they arrested Rahul Arora (29) and Gurshant Singh (19) from Punjab. "We request everybody to approach only authorised agencies for documentation and avoid falling prey to fraudulent agents," she said. Police are searching for Jatinder Bir Singh and Gurpreet Singh, who are suspected to be the masterminds of the gang.

(With TOI inputs)