Noida: More than 150 people were duped by a Sector 3-based fake travel company on the pretext of providing them jobs in foreign countries. The Sector 20 police is investigating the matter.
According to victims, the company had put up advertisements on social media targeting people in the eastern states of Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal and parts of Uttar Pradesh.
“We came across the ad a month ago. When my father applied, they said his resume was shortlisted after which they asked us to send over his passport and a medical certificate,” Nitesh Pathak (24), who hails from Bihar, said. His father, Vijay Pathak (45), was a victim of the fraud.
He said a few days later, the suspects asked them to pay ₹20,000 as visa processing fee and later sought more money for the ticket.
“There are five people from our district who were duped in this manner by the travel company. They paid a total of ₹4 lakh to them and were promised jobs as electricians, construction workers, etc. in countries such as Malaysia, Maldives and UAE. My father finished his high school and was promised work as a welder in Malaysia,” Pathak said.
He said the victims were later sent tickets. “The flight was for Wednesday morning at 6.45am. They had said an agent will meet us at the airport with the passport. However, when no one came to meet us, we enquired and found that the tickets had been cancelled. When we went to their office in Sector 3, it was empty. They had closed operations and fled. Their phones were also off,” Pathak said.
{{/usCountry}}He said the victims were later sent tickets. “The flight was for Wednesday morning at 6.45am. They had said an agent will meet us at the airport with the passport. However, when no one came to meet us, we enquired and found that the tickets had been cancelled. When we went to their office in Sector 3, it was empty. They had closed operations and fled. Their phones were also off,” Pathak said.
{{/usCountry}}At least 45 victims gathered at the Sector 20 police station to file their complaint. All of them had paid varied sums to the suspects.
“We have registered a case of fraud and cheating against seven persons, two of whom are women, and will take necessary legal action against them,” Rajveer Singh Chauhan said.
The company had allegedly been functioning for the past two years and police suspect that it may have duped hundreds of people in a similar manner.