Mumbai: Husband-Wife Arrested in Malad for Cheating 37 Victims of Rs 1.63 Crore on Pretext of Canada Work Visas

Malad Police have arrested two accused for allegedly cheating 37 people, including a woman, of ₹1.63 crore by luring them with false promises of securing work visas for jobs in Canada. The arrested accused have been identified as Rina Gaurav Shah and Gaurav Shah. The duo had absconded even before an FIR was registered and were on the run for nearly one-and-a-half years. Police have now successfully traced and arrested them. Investigators suspect the accused may be involved in similar offences, and their arrest could lead to several shocking revelations.

The complainant, Sarika, resides with her mother in the Malvani area of Malad. About two years ago, she was working as a General Manager at Finotrick Consulting Private Limited in Borivali and was keen on securing a job in Canada. During this period, she came across an advertisement of The Visa Mansion, located at Agarwal B2B Centre, Kachpada, Malad. After contacting the number mentioned in the advertisement, she was called to the company’s office.

In May 2023, Sarika visited The Visa Mansion office, where Sunita Shetty introduced her to the company’s owners, Rina Shah and Gaurav Shah. The accused assured her that they would provide a Canada work visa for ₹7 lakh and shared the company’s official email ID with her.

A few days later, Sarika received job-related details of a Canadian company. Finding the offer suspicious, she did not respond. Subsequently, the accused sent details of another company, following which Sarika expressed her interest and applied for a work visa. She transferred a total amount of ₹7.16 lakh to the accused in instalments for the visa process.

On June 11, 2024, the accused informed her that her Canada work visa had been approved. Acting on this, Sarika visited the Canada Consulate office at Mahalaxmi to collect the visa, where she discovered that it was not a work visa but a visitor visa. Shocked, she went to The Visa Mansion office in Malad to seek clarification, only to find the office shut. Repeated attempts to contact the company staff failed.

Further inquiry revealed that, similar to Sarika, 36 other individuals had also been cheated by Rina and Gaurav Shah under the pretext of securing Canada work visas. The accused had collected a total of ₹1,56,70,400 from these victims and misappropriated the amount.

Following the revelation, Sarika approached Malad Police and lodged a complaint against the two accused. After verifying the complaint, police registered a case of cheating against Rina and Gaurav Shah and launched a search operation. After being wanted for nearly one-and-a-half years, both accused were finally arrested by a special team of Malad Police.

Further investigation is underway.