MONDAY, JULY 08, 2024
Team Herald
PANJIM: The Crime Branch of Goa Police arrested a 52-year-old Karnataka native, Mohammad Haji, for cheating people on the pretext of providing lucrative jobs abroad.
A case under Sections 420 and 120 B of IPC, read with 10/24 of Emigration Act 1983, has been registered against multiple individuals involved in international job scam linked to cybercrimes in India. The scam spanned across various countries, including India, Thailand and Cambodia.
Police said that the accused confessed to his crimes during the interrogation.
The bank accounts used in receiving money have been frozen and efforts are on to trace other accused persons to uproot the illegal network of recruitment, police said.
Mobile phones of the accused have been recovered with incriminating evidence; police added.
The Cyber Police advised people, particularly the family members of individuals working in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam, to verify the whereabouts of their relatives.
“Those engaged in cybercrimes in these countries are advised to return immediately. Failure to do so will result in legal action initiated by the Goa Police. We are collecting information on Goans overstaying in these countries,” the police advisory said.
CASE 1: A woman from Quepem lured two victims with the promise of lucrative job opportunities in Thailand, offering a monthly salary of Rs 60,000. The victims left Goa on February 14 and landed in Thailand the next day. However, upon arrival, they were taken to Cambodia and placed in a call centre job instead of the promised casino job. They came back to Goa in March, after making medical excuses.
CASE 2: Accused Nashir Ahamad Tigadi from Karnataka, and Mohammad Haji, who run ‘Excellent Services’ recruitment agency in Mumbai, assured one victim a high-paying job in Cambodia with a monthly salary of Rs one lakh. Upon his arrival at Phnom Penh on April 11, he was taken to ‘Dana Technologies’, a company involved in fraudulent activities, including creating fake social media accounts to lure potential victims into crypto currency trading scams. The victim came back in May.
