Bhubaneswar: The Economic Offences Wing, Odisha, arrested a person in the Haj Pilgrimage Fraud of Rs 1.2 Crore.
The accused has been identified as Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh. He was arrested from Mumbai.
Nabeel was produced before the Court of JMFC, 63rd Court, Andheri, Mumbai and brought on transit remand to Bhubaneswar. The arrested accused is going to be produced before the Hon’ble Designated Court under OPID Act, Balasore today i.e. on 30.09.2024.
The case was registered on the written report of Mir Khursid of Kazimahala, PS- Dhamnagar, Dist- Bhadrak against the proprietors of ‘Al-Adam Tour & Travels’ namely Firdos Bi Abdul Mubin Shaikh, her son Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh and daughter Saima Anjum Shaikh, and Md. Bismillah Shaikh, Prop: Al Izma Tours & Travels of Vikhroli Kurla, West Mumbai for collecting the cash of Rs 45,786 and Rs.50,786 from each of the prospective pilgrims totalling Rs 1.2 Crores from 189 devotees, during the period from 2019-23, to arrange their pilgrimage to Saudi Arab on the eve of UMRAH. But, the above-accused Proprietors neither took the prospective pilgrims on pilgrimage nor did they refund the amount so collected from them.
As found in the investigation, during the period from 2019 to 23, the accused proprietors of M/s Al-Adam Tour & Travel Agency floated advertisements on social media apart from distributing leaflets containing the lucrative packages, contact details etc. whereby they induced /motivated the Muslim devotees to avail the opportunity under two of their tour packages of Rs 45,786 and Rs 50,786 per individual pilgrim to go on UMRAH pilgrimage to Arab Countries like Mecca-Madina etc.
They assured the pilgrims of cheap, secure and safe pilgrimage. Even prior to that, the agency had taken the devotees on a pilgrimage which made the devotees repose their faith in the agency and avail the opportunity so offered in the tour packages.
Being induced, devotees of Bhadrak, Balasore, Baripada and other parts of Odisha, deposited their respective amounts in the given accounts in the advertisements through bank transfers, apart from paying in UPI and even by cash under money receipts given by the accused proprietors. The arrested accused and his mother are the authorized signatories of the accounts in which the pilgrims’ money has been deposited.
The collection by the owners of ‘Al-Adam Tour & Travels’ continued till the first half of 2023 after which the proprietors switched off their mobile phones and remained disconnected from the depositors. Very few investors who had insisted on the refund of their amounts were given the cheques by the accused proprietors which were dishonored by the bank. Thereafter, various efforts by the depositors proved futile to locate the office of the agency and its proprietors.
As found, from the year 2019 to 1st half of the year 2023, the owner of ‘Al-Adam Tour & Travels’ Firdos Bi Abdul Mubin Shaikh, son Nabeel Abdul Mubin
Shaikh, daughter of Saima Anjum Shaikh and one of their partners Mohamad Bishmillah Shaikh proprietor of ‘Al-Ijma Tour & Travels’ entered into a conspiracy fraudulently collected more than Rs.1 Crore from the members of the Muslim community of Bhadrak, Balasore, Mayurbhanj and other districts of Odisha to arrange/facilitate their pilgrimage UMRAH to Soudi Arab through two of their tour packages.
After the collection of a massive amount, the proprietors went on deferring the date of pilgrimage on many pretexts/excuses over the years from 2019-23, and finally switched off their mobile phones and absconded by closing down their office. Thus, they misappropriated the above amounts so collected from the prospective pilgrims. The accused persons have diverted the deposited amount to their personal and many other accounts and even withdrawn the amount by using ATM.
The agency has also collected huge amounts in a similar fashion for pilgrimage from the prospective pilgrims of Maharashtra, Delhi etc. apart from Odisha and verification is going on whether any fraudulence has been committed there by the agency and its proprietor. It is also learnt that the tour packages cover
the catering facilities extended by the Pakistani Nationals for which there was a transaction between the Pakistani Nationals and the arrested accused which is still under verification. Many incriminating materials like mobile phones, money receipts and dishonoured cheques have been seized during the investigation.