In a reel of legal engagements unfurling in the past week, six non-native individuals hailing from diverse locations – four from Pakistan, one from Italy, and another one from Russia – found themselves tangled in the law enforcement net. Among those arrested were individuals who were part of a visa forgery gang. Their misadventures were narrated by Pol Maj Gen Pantana Nuchanart, the Deputy Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, who engaged the press at a conference that transpired on Thursday.
The saga began when law enforcement authorities apprehended four Pakistani individuals who found themselves at the receiving end of the law – Ammad Hussain, Muhammade Yaseen, Shakeel Liaqat, and Irfan Hussain. These men, ranging from 28 to 49 years old, called an apartment in the Khlong Chan region of Bangkok’s Bang Kapi district their haven.
Their operation was laid bare following a report which revealed that this group was allegedly providing fraudulent visas to foreign nationals who harbored a desire to explore the scenic grandeur of the 27 European nations in the Schengen Area. They incurred the attention of the immigration police who then resorted to an undercover operation for attaining irrefutable evidence.
An undercover agent, an Indian national named Rohit, managed to infiltrate the operation. He engaged their services to secure a Schengen visa and handed over his passport for the same. Furnishing a sum of 7,000 Euros yielded him his passport stamped with what looked like a valid Schengen visa. However, thorough investigation by the immigration police confirmed its falsity upon consultation with the Italian embassy. Weaving the threads of evidence together, the law enforcement agencies launched a raid at an apartment in Soi Lat Phrao 148, nailing the culprits red-handed.
Amidst these arrests, another storyline unfurled in Nong Prue’s condominium in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district where an Italian resident named Adriano Corrado was taken into custody. His apprehension was orchestrated by the Interpol office in Rome which collaborated with the Royal Thai Police’s Foreign Affairs Division. Corrado was charged with robbery and was known to have sought refuge in Thailand, despite an Interpol Red Notice flagging him.
It was reported that Corrado was involved in pilfering an estimate of 28,000 Euros, with an assortment of invaluable items. Corrado, who had infiltrated Thailand in early 2020, had even procured a visa valid until 2023 under the pretense of being elderly.
In an unrelated incident, a Russian citizen, Nikolai Shtanko, had a brush with the law at a border checkpoint when en route to Malaysia via Khuan Don district’s Satun province. An overstaying visa led to an investigation in the Immigration Bureau database, revealing an Interpol Red Notice issued against him. It was then revealed that Shtanko had been a part of a crime syndicate dealing in illegal electronic money transactions. Consequently, Shtanko was reprimanded for his visa violation and is now set for repatriation.
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