Surat (Gujarat), April 24, 2026 — A grand plan to travel to Dubai came to an abrupt halt for a Surat-based couple after authorities exposed a major passport forgery scam. The local police, acting on a tip-off from immigration officials, have arrested the couple for allegedly procuring and attempting to use heavily forged travel documents.
The arrests shed light on the thriving underground network of visa and passport fraudulent agents operating within the diamond city.
Caught in the Act
According to the initial police report, the accused—a middle-aged couple residing in the Katargam area of Surat—had planned an extended vacation and business exploration trip to Dubai. However, discrepancies in their documentation were flagged during a routine digital background verification by immigration authorities.
Upon closer inspection, officials discovered that critical identity details on the couple’s passports had been artificially altered. The passports, while genuinely printed, contained doctored birth dates and mismatched name histories designed to bypass previous travel restrictions and visa rejections.
The Agent Connection
During the preliminary interrogation by the Surat Crime Branch, the couple reportedly confessed to utilizing the services of a shady local travel agent to bypass the strict documentation process. They admitted to paying a hefty sum—running into several lakhs of rupees—to the agent, who promised them “guaranteed and hassle-free” clearance for their Middle Eastern trip.
The police have confiscated the fraudulent passports, travel tickets, and the digital devices of the accused for forensic analysis.
“We have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Passports Act, including cheating, forgery, and impersonation. The couple is currently in police custody,” a senior police official stated.
Expanding the Investigation
The investigation is no longer limited to just the couple. The Surat Police are now launching a full-scale hunt to track down the mastermind travel agent who supplied the counterfeit documents. Authorities suspect that this agent may be part of a larger, organized immigration racket that has been exploiting desperate travelers in Gujarat, charging exorbitant fees for fake visas and doctored passports.
Police have also issued a strict advisory to citizens, urging them to rely only on government-authorized centers and certified agents for passport and visa applications to avoid falling into such criminal traps.
