ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
March 15, 2005

Criminal group making false foreign visas liquidated

MOSCOW

A criminal group that forged foreign visas, including visas to the
Schengen zone and the United States, has been liquidated in Moscow,
the press service of the Interior Ministry’s anti-organized crime
department told Tass on Tuesday.

Although information about the criminal group was available around
six months ago, it took time to catch the criminals red-handed, said
a source from the Interior Ministry.

The passports with false visas were finally confiscated after a
criminal deal involving two citizens of Armenia who were offered
“help” in getting visas to the United States. Both victims were sure
that the visas were genuine. The fraud was disclosed when the two
victims arrived at Sheremetyevo airport, but were banned from a
flight to the United States by Interior Ministry’s officers and the
federal border guard service.

Simultaneously, four criminals involved in the false visa deal were
detained at the Kazan railway station in Moscow. The group consisted
of two citizens of Russia, an Uzbek and another one of Armenian
descent. Documents incriminating the dealers along with the money
paid for the false visas were confiscated.

“It is not the only incident of illegal business in which the
criminal group was involved,” police said.

Criminal proceedings against the criminals have been instituted.