Malta's High Commissioner to India has requested a meeting with New Delhi police over the recent arrest of three Indians who allegedly sent unemployed men to Malta and other EU countries using forged Schengen visas.
Wilfred Kenely, Malta's representative in India, said when contacted he had no information about the case and was seeking clarification from the Indian police.
Two of 19 passports seized by the Indian police in a raid on a gang involved in a human trafficking ring had fraudulent Maltese Schengen visas stamped on them, according to a Delhi police official statement.
The gang of three, who allegedly operated a wider network of contacts that included people working in high commissions, used to supply fraudulent paperwork to obtain Schengen visas for unemployed Punjabi men against hefty payments.
Malta was the only Schengen country mentioned by name in the police statement even though reference was made to other EU countries.
Mr Kenely said the police had never questioned or arrested any official from the Maltese High Commission and the only information he had came through reports in the Indian media.
The Special Operations Squad of Delhi's police crime branch raided a farm in New Delhi on April 7 where three men were allegedly caught red-handed handling forged documents, passports and substantial amounts of money.
The three men were arrested and initial investigations revealed the gang had obtained 175 Schengen visas through fraudulent means over the last seven months.
The police said that, although members of the gang were present all over India, they operated mainly in the Indian state of Punjab. They used to make contact with young people from rural villages who wanted to travel to European countries on Schengen visas but who would not normally fulfil the necessary criteria to be granted such visas.
Documents such as income tax returns, bank statements and invitation offers among others are required to obtain a Schengen visa.
The young men would be lured to pay between €12,000 and €13,000 in return for forged documents fulfilling the visa requirements. Payments would be made in phases with the first instalment effected when the young men handed over their passports to the criminal agents. Passports would then pass on to the gang leader, who used to procure forged supportive documents through the other two, the Indian police said.
After fulfilling all necessary requirements, passports were then presented at a High Commission by the gang where their associates used to arrange for the visa to be stamped.
A photocopy of the issued visa was then shown to the candidate who, in turn, made the second payment of the agreed amount. The last instalment would be paid when the passport with the Schengen visa was handed over, according to the Indian investigators.
ksansone@timesofmalta.com
October 15, 2019: This article was amended following a right to be forgotten request.