The RGIA (Rajiv Gandhi International Airport) police arrested the managing director of a Hyderabad-based overseas education consultancy and a student for their alleged involvement in a fake certificate racket used to secure admissions to foreign universities.
Police said 28-year-old Pakiru Gopal Reddy, a student from Nalgonda district, was deported from Dallas Airport, US, and returned to Hyderabad, where immigration officials flagged discrepancies in his academic records. During questioning, he admitted to using forged degree certificates obtained from Dhanalaxmi Overseas Consultancy, located in Teachers Colony, BN Reddy Nagar, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
Investigations revealed that Kathoj Ashok (29), managing director of the consultancy and also from Nalgonda, had been running the operation for five years. In 2021, he established contact with a forger in Kerala who supplied fake degrees, experience letters and bank statements.
Ashok charged students between Rs 80,000 and Rs 1 lakh for each fake degree, paying Rs 30,000 per document to his Kerala associate.
Gopal approached Ashok in August 2021 and received forged BSc (Computer Science) certificates purportedly issued by Madurai Kamaraj University, showing completion dates between 2015 and 2018. He used these to gain admission to Webster University in the US, paid $28,000 (`22 lakh) in tuition and studied for 15 months.
However, on a recent return to the US, immigration officers found his student status inactive on the SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) database and deported him.
Authorities confirmed that his visa was issued on fake credentials. Further probe revealed Ashok had helped nearly 15 students secure foreign admissions using forged documents, according to the report by The New Indian Express.
Police seized 121 counterfeit certificates in the name of 'Sri Hayagreeva Arts and Science College' linked to Madurai Kamaraj University, 34 forged Osmania University documents, several official stamps from private firms and banks, three laptops, three mobile phones and Rs 10 lakh in cash.
