A 43-year-old man in Ahmedabad registered a complaint with the city crime branch alleging that six people duped him and three others. The man who owns a garage and automobile accessories shop said that by promising Canada work permits, the fraudsters cheated him of Rs 10 lakh. The man, Lalji Patel is a resident of Shiromani tenements on Viratnagar Road in Odhav, Ahmedabad
According to FIR, Lalji Patel saw an advertisement for Canada work permits in a WhatsApp group. He contacted Kalpesh Patel of Adalaj. Kalpesh works as an ST depot manager at Ambaji.
Kalpesh promised to provide a work permit visa within four to five months for a fee of Rs 11 lakh. Kalpesh informed Lalji that he will need Rs 2.5 lakh to begin the procedure and Rs 8.5 lakh after he obtains a visa.
On Kalpesh’s instructions, Lalji gave him Rs 2.5 lakh in August 2021 and sent him a copy of his passport for the visa procedure. Kalpesh sent him an LMIA (labour market impact assessment) letter on December 5. Lalji paid Rs 7,300 for a medical examination at a private hospital near Vaishnodevi Circle.
Lalji inquired about the visa with Kalpesh in February of this year. Kalpesh informed him that his wife, Heena Patel, runs a visa agency and assured him that his visa would be ready in three months.
Lalji provided his biometric data on March 16, 2022. He later discovered that the procedure was not for a work permit visa but for a visitor’s visa. Lalji stated that he contacted WhatsApp group and discovered that three others were duped too. The names of others are Dashrath Patel of Odhav, Pranay Patel of Naroda, and Jaydeep Patel of Krushnanagar. They had each paid Rs 2.50 lakh to Kalpesh.
Kalpesh informed the four upon contacting that their files are with a travel agency run by Ganpat Patel. Ganpat Patel runs business with his wife Shweta Patel and their cousin Babu Patel from Jotana in Mehsana. Another person associated with Ganpat was Rutvik Patel of Pratik in Sabarkantha. Lalji and three other people eventually approached police. Kalpesh and five others have been charged with cheating, breach of trust, and criminal conspiracy.
Also Read: Canada Dream Shattered; Travel Agent Dupes Two Of Rs 6 Lakh
