The Mulavukad police on Wednesday arrested a person on the charge of cheating job aspirants of lakhs of rupees by promising them visa for non-existent jobs abroad.
The arrested man was identified as Justin James, 30, of Kollam. A fire and safety diploma holder, the accused allegedly used that educational background to cheat people.
He used to trap victims by issuing online advertisements to arrange visa for jobs in the fire and safety sector in Singapore and Malaysia. He allegedly cheated people of ₹10 lakh from Mulavukad police station limits alone.
The accused is suspected to have cheated people of ₹50 lakh from across 12 districts in the State. The police are expecting more complaints against him in the coming days. Four mobile phones he had allegedly used to commit the fraud were also seized.
Reportedly, he had fallen victim to a similar fraud in the past and chose to adopt the same path to cheat others. He reportedly lived in hiding in lodges and rented houses in Kochi, Alapuzha, Kollam, Bengaluru, and Tamil Nadu.
A team led by Mulavukad Inspector Sunil Raj and sub inspector Jayaprakash made the arrest.
