Two women applicants and a visa consultant from Mehsana allegedly tried to deceive the US embassy and immigration apparatus by forging education and income-related documents in an attempt to secure non-immigrant visas and fulfil their American dreams.
Eric Molitor, an investigator, filed a complaint for visa fraud in New Delhi against Neha Patel, 26, and Pinkal Patel, 24, both residents of Mehsana and Chirag Patel, 29, a resident of Kadi. The FIR states that Neha had applied to the US embassy in Delhi for a non-immigrant visa. In her application, she claimed to have attended a local science and arts college from 2015 to 2018 and earned a BA degree. She presented college transcripts to support the claim, added the FIR.
She also submitted bank statements and certificates showing her father’s bank balance as Rs 52,20,000 and records showing work experience with a pharmaceutical company, the FIR states.
On June 20, at her interview in US embassy, she was questioned and ultimately admitted that her education and bank documents were forged.
She told US embassy officials that two visa agents from Mehsana - Chirag Patel and Mihir Patel - had given her the forged documents, for which she had paid Rs 150,000. She was supposed to pay Rs 24,50,000 to the two visa agents, the FIR states.
Similarly, Pinkal Patel, in her interview on the same day, also furnished forged documents such as bank statements showing her father’s bank balance to be Rs 51,13,000. During the interview, she also admitted that her father did not own the bank account shown in the application. Pinkal also said that Chirag had given her the forged documents for Rs 200,000. She was supposed to pay him Rs 10,00,000 more after getting the non-immigrant visa.
Sources in the police said Chirag’s brother, Chintan, is settled in the US and has allegedly been helping Chirag and Mihir run a visa consultancy firm and send people to the US illegally.
