Father-son duo booked for R 45 lakh visa scam, victim trafficked to USA illegally

JIND: Police have booked two travel agents, a father and son, for duping a man on the pretext of sending him to America.

Ajay, who studied up to Class XII and is a resident of Asan village in the Jind district, alleged that in July 2023, “I came into contact with Azad Singh and his son Aryan, the operators of Aryan Visa Consultancy based in Jind city. They told me they could get me a study and tourist visa for Canada, promising that I would earn a lot of money there and be able to support my family. I trusted their words and agreed. Initially, they told me the expense of going to Canada legally would be around Rs 15 lakh, and I paid the same amount to them. However, after some time, when they did not send me to Canada, my family and I contacted them. They then claimed they could not send me to Canada but promised to send me to the USA and that too through a number one route (legal route),” reads the complaint.

“We agreed to this offer as well. They then told us that the total cost for going to the USA would be Rs 38 lakh, and since we had already paid Rs 15 lakh, we needed to pay an additional Rs 23 lakh. Believing their claims, we gave them the remaining amount. After taking the full amount of Rs 38 lakh, instead of sending me legally, they sent me to the USA through illegal means via multiple countries on a tourist visa from Delhi to Vietnam, but soon called me back and rerouted me through Uzbekistan, Brazil, Suriname, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico. Finally, I was illegally pushed across the border into the USA through Arizona,” reads the FIR.

“During this illegal journey, I was kidnapped, and my family was threatened and extorted for more money by the father-son duo. Out of concern for my life, my family ended up paying another Rs 7 lakh, leading to a total amount of Rs 45 lakh.”

“I ended up spending 11 months in jail in the USA. When I was released, the US authorities deported me back to India. When I asked Azad for a refund, he refused to return any money. Therefore, strict action should be taken against the accused,” he said.

Police officials said that the victim was deported from the USA recently along with many other Indians. “The matter is being investigated,” said the police.