Hyderabad: The Rachakonda police arrested seven persons who were running a fake educational certificate scam on Tuesday. The gang admitted to having sold over 100 fake certificates to job aspirants and those seeking to go to foreign countries for higher studies, police said.
The LB Nagar zonal team, special operations team and Chaitanyapuri police arrested the gang from Lakshmi Nagar Colony in a joint operation.
According to the police, Akula Ravi Avinash alias Ajay supplied certificates of various universities at ₹3.5 lakh apiece. He joined hands with prime accused Chintakayala Venkateshwarulu, who has worked as a correspondent at a degree college and a junior college, to sell the certificates to drop-outs, Rachakonda police commissioner D.S. Chauhan said in a press conference.
The police said that Ajay had a website wherein those seeking certificates could fill in their details for procuring the same.
A third accused was identified as Peddukotla Abhilash Kumar, a BTech drop-out who joined a BSc computer course at a college in Kothapet. Despite having 15 backlogs, he wanted to go abroad through placements. He came in contact with Venkateshwarulu, who sold him a fake BTech degree from a renowned university for ₹3.5 lakh.
Two other accused were identified as Jothi Reddy and Naveen, who acted as agents and canvassed drop-outs to sell them certificates.
The police said that Ajay is a repeat offender and he was arrested thrice in similar cases by the Warangal police.
Info box
What was seized:
86 fake degree certificates
71 fake Intermediate certificates
4 SSC memos
10 fake rubber stamps
37 memorandum of marks
Multiple transcripts, provisional certificates, consolidated mark memos and empty bonafide, transfer and migration certificates with stamp and signature
“Please do not believe fake educational consultancies, mediators or agents of other state universities who make false promises of providing education certificates through backdoor means. If anyone is involved in illegal activities, they may have to face legal consequences” — D.S. Chauhan, Rachakonda police commissioner
