Valsad Police Busts Passport Fraud Linked to Portuguese Citizenship Bid, Two Brothers Held

Valsad: A scam involving the procurement of passports using forged documents has been exposed in Valsad, with two brothers arrested in a joint investigation by Valsad City Police and the Special Operations Group (SOG). The accused, who have a prior criminal record, allegedly attempted to secure fresh passports using fake birth certificates to facilitate Portuguese citizenship and obtain UK visas.

Illegal route adopted due to criminal history

Preliminary police investigations revealed that the accused, identified as Bhavik Raichand Patel and Pragnesh Raichand Patel, were seeking to travel abroad. However, due to their existing criminal history, obtaining passports through legal channels was difficult. During interrogation, police found that their parents are Portuguese citizens, which could make it easier for them to secure UK visas. To exploit this, the brothers allegedly chose an illegal route.

Unable to obtain passports legitimately, the brothers allegedly procured fake birth certificates purportedly issued by the Valsad Municipality. Using these forged documents, they made corresponding changes to their Aadhaar and PAN cards. They then used these documents to apply for new passports at the Surat Regional Passport Office.

Forgery detected during police verification

The fraud came to light during the mandatory police verification process at Valsad Town Police Station. Officials grew suspicious upon examining the documents and conducted verification with the municipality. It was found that the birth certificate numbers submitted by the accused did not exist in official records. A detailed probe by the SOG and local police subsequently exposed the entire operation.

Valsad Police have registered a case under Sections 336(2), 336(3), 337, 338, 339, 340(2), and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, along with Section 12(1) of the Passports Act, 1967.

Deputy Superintendent of Police A.K. Verma said further investigation is underway to determine the origin of the forged documents and to identify whether any agents or government officials were involved in facilitating the fraud. DeshGujarat