Kitchen Fraud gang busted in European visa scam

A huge racket for obtaining visas to European countries with forged documents has been busted by Abu Dhabi Police with the arrest of two people in possession of more than 100 forged stamps, bank documents and other papers used for seeking visas to European countries from their embassies here.

According to Abu Dhabi Police, it is one of the most dangerous and sophisticated forgery cases yet in the emirate. It was cracked by an investigating team with the co-ordination of diplomatic missions in the capital.

Code named 'Kitchen Fraud', the scam was unearthed by following a plan drawn up by an investigating team from the Crime Investigation Department that led to the arrest of the two culprits from an Asian country.

They were arrested with all the forged documents and instruments in their possession, which were used for obtaining visas to European countries from Abu Dhabi for clients living outside the UAE.

Colonel Maktoum Ali Al Sharifi, Director of Crime Investigation Department at the police headquarters, said: "The main suspect, 30 years old MAM, was arrested while trying to send back seven passports with European visas acquired with forged documents to clients in his home country. The modus operandi of the criminals was to bring in their clients' passports by post or courier and get them stamped with manipulated visas against a fee of Dh30,000 each and send them back.

"They used very sophisticated methods to issue these forged visas and had a good network of middlemen assisting them in the crime. Investigations are still on to unearth and apprehend other members of the gang with the co-operation of the governments of countries where they might have links."

Al Sharifi added that for every illegal transaction they used to collect a handsome advance from their clients, mainly from outside the UAE. He said they had a network of agents in an Asian country where their job was to find clients and forge documents, including forged resident visas for the UAE and employment papers that qualified their clients for obtaining visas from various embassies in Abu Dhabi. The papers forged at the other end included employment and salary certificates, bank statements and other documents required to be submitted by permanent residents of the UAE to European embassies here.

The passports were also stamped with forged entry and exit seals of the UAE immigration showing the holder lived in the country and left for home after obtaining the European visa. Some passports also bear forged visas and entry and exit seals of other countries.

Lt Colonel Dr Rashid Mohammed Burasheed, head of Organised Crime Investigation Department, said the racket was busted after tip-offs from European countries about non-UAE residents obtaining visas for travel issued by their embassies in the country.

"We raided the main suspect's residence and arrested him red-handed with all the evidence and forged documents. The seizure included 13 Asian passports, visas, 15 stamp and seals for airport entry and exit, 36 credit cards, six bank seals, 50 local bank account documents, 31 chequebooks, four passport copies, 27 identity cards, 108 images of prospective applicants, 11 stamps of local firms and forged licences."

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