South Korean Visa Fraud: Charges Filed Against Five, Including Two Naval Officers
The Mumbai Crime Branch has filed a comprehensive 1,500-page chargesheet against five individuals, including two Indian Navy officers, in connection with a visa fraud racket involving forged documents…
The Mumbai Crime Branch has filed a comprehensive 1,500-page chargesheet against five individuals, including two Indian Navy officers, in connection with a visa fraud racket involving forged documents for travel to South Korea. The accused include Lieutenant Commander Vipin Dagar and Sub-Lieutenant Brahma Jyoti Sharma, both of whom are currently in judicial custody.The chargesheet, filed on September 26, 2024, outlines the role of the five accused in the scam, which involved submitting forged documents to secure South Korean visas for unskilled labourers from Jammu and Kashmir. The other accused have been identified as Deepak Dogra, Simran Teji, and Ravi Kumar. All five are under judicial custody as the case continues.
Investigation and Evidence
As part of the investigation, police have collected a range of evidence, including 14 passports, multiple mobile phones, laptops, SIM cards, pen drives, debit cards, 108 forged rubber stamps, and a machine used to create the stamps. These items were seized from the accused, along with other incriminating documents.Lieutenant Commander Dagar reportedly purchased the rubber stamp machine from Visakhapatnam on the orders of Sub-Lieutenant Sharma, who had researched the machine and shopped online before instructing Dagar. Police believe Sharma acted as the mastermind behind the operation, taking steps to avoid direct involvement by delegating tasks to Dagar and other accomplices.The investigation also revealed that Sharma used the bank accounts of co-accused Deepak Dogra and Simran Teji to handle financial transactions, avoiding direct transfers to his own account. To further obscure his involvement, Teji opened bank accounts in the names of her mother and grandmother, which were linked to Sharma’s mobile number to receive transaction alerts.
The Modus Operandi
The racket involved sending unskilled labourers from Jammu and Kashmir to South Korea on tourist visas obtained with falsified documents. Once in South Korea, the labourers were instructed to seek asylum, falsely claiming persecution and human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir. The gang charged each individual ₹10 lakh or more for facilitating their travel. Once the workers arrived in South Korea, they discarded their passports and applied for asylum, often staying for several years to earn and save money, significantly improving their families' living conditions back in India.Police discovered that the racket sent over 15 individuals from Jammu and Kashmir to South Korea. The scam came to light in June 2024 when Lieutenant Commander Dagar visited the Korean consulate to follow up on a visa application that had been rejected. A confrontation with consulate officials raised suspicions, leading the consulate to alert the Crime Branch. Subsequent investigations revealed that Dagar had assisted in forging documents for the visa application, prompting the filing of an FIR at MRA Marg Police Station.
No Terror Link Found
Although the investigation initially examined whether the visa racket had any connection to terrorist activities, police ruled out a terror angle. The case remains under active investigation, with more developments expected as the legal process unfolds.
