25 deprivedof Rs6.2m invisa scam

LAHORE :A female crew-member of a private airline has been accused of issuing bogus work visas for Abu Dhabi after extorting over Rs6.2 million from poor people in Sharqpur Shareef, District Sheikhupura. 

Sharqpur Police have been probing the scandal after registering a case. Complainant Maqsood Ahmad, a resident of Mohalla Hajipura, Sharqpur, told police he was running travel agency named Jan-Nisar-e-Haramaen in the area to issue visas for Umra. Meanwhile, Sana Shahzadi, daughter of Abdul Rasheed, a resident of Purani Bheni Sharqpur Sharif brokered a deal with him saying she had at least 25 labour visas for Abu Dhabi. The accused, who is serving in a private airline, allegedly received Rs6.2 million in different installments in the presence of witnesses in October and November, 2016 with the promise to provide him visas within days. 

However, with the passage of time, she started using delaying tactics. Some of the visas were handed over to him but that proved bogus. The airline tickets were also proven fake. Over this, the complainant demanded his cash back. Sana issued two cheques bearing the aforesaid amount, but they were dishonoured by the bank. 

Sharqpur Shareef police registered the case on the complaint of Maqsood and started investigations. The complainant alleged that police had facilitated the accused in securing pre-arrest bail. However, the police have so far been conducting investigations on merit.

He appealed to DPO and RPO Sheikhupura for recovery of the amount so that he could return the same to 25 poor people who were willing to go abroad for livelihood.  When contacted, accused Sana Shahzadi, her brother responded to the call and said the main accused named Muhammad Ali, who was the teacher of Sana, was in Dubai and he had engineered the fraud.

He added, he and his father were not aware of the deal between Sana and Maqsood. To a question, he said Sana had transferred a little cash to Dubai while major amount was sent directly to Ali. He also claimed Sana had been trapped in the scam as Maqsood had mainly brokered the deal with Ali. He also said Maqsood had received two empty cheques but later filled himself and got an FIR registered. 

However, he said they will cooperate with the investigators to unearth the real culprits. The complainant Maqsood said he had trusted Sana as she had claimed she would facilitate him in issuing 25 visas. He also said Sana had signed on the receipt of cash in the presence of two witnesses. She promised to send 25 persons to Abu Dhabi. Each person will be paid 1,800 dirham salary, meals, residence and medical and in the absence of any of the mentioned facilities, Sana will be responsible for it. 

IO of the case said they have started probing the matter and will soon unearth the mystery behind this myth.  The airlines spokesperson Zohaib Hassan said the matter was not in the notice of the airline. He added if she had taken any step in personal capacity it had nothing to do with the airline. To a question that if the platform of the airline was used to transfer the amount, he added, it was not possible as a number of government agencies counter check every crew-member.