Fake passport returns to haunt Kerala bizman 20 years later

For 15 years, a Kerala-based businessman flew in and out of Gulf countries on a passport acquired from an agent in Mumbai using fake documents.

But finally, his past caught up with him. And the irony was, he was carrying a fresh passport made using original documents and with his real name.

Immigration officials at Mumbai airport intercepted Prasheedkumar Andisseri (50), who was to catch a flight to Doha, when they found that the information in his passport did not match the data in their records.

"Andisseri was caught after the immigration found that the photograph and date of birth on the passport matched with that on another passport, but the name and address was different," said an investigator.

Officials said that Andisseri, who claims to be in the construction business, dumped his earlier passport that was procured in the name of Rajnith Kumar using fake documents in 1996 after a red corner notice was issued against him by the Interpol in a cheque-bounce case in the UAE in 2010.

In 1996, Andisseri, who is from Wayanad district, got a passport made from an agent in Mumbai by just submitting his photograph and paying Rs 2,000 (around QR110).

He wanted to go to the UAE as he had got a mechanic's job in an AC manufacturing unit, said officials. He has told the Sahar police that he even got the passport renewed from the Indian Embassy in the UAE in 2006.

Between 1996 and 2010, Andisseri made several trips to Doha, Muscat, Dubai and other Gulf nations on this passport and never got caught, said officials. By then he had even set up his own AC manufacturing business. However, in 2010, he was named accused in a cheque-bounce case in the UAE.

"Andisseri managed to evade arrest and flee to Kozhikode. He knew that he would get caught if he flew from Doha, so he travelled to Muscat and then caught a flight to Kerala in 2010.

In 2011, he got a fresh passport made in Kerala using original documents and even changed his business to construction," said the investigator. He even got the fresh passport renewed only last month from his hometown in Wayanad district.

Sahar police senior inspector B T Mukhedkar said Andisseri has been booked under IPC sections 419 (impersonation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 465 (forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document of electronic record) as well as under the Indian Passport Act.

"Our extradition cell will alert the Interpol about his arrest who will take his custody. If they do not come here, we’ll place the matter before a magistrate, who will decide further course of action," said Mukhedkar.

Courtesy: timesofindia.com