Twelve “diplomatic” passports, 34 counterfeit seals of foreign governments and companies, two fake press cards, Rs 44.7 lakh in cash, and four luxury cars bearing diplomatic number plates.
That’s what the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force found at a two-storey bungalow in Ghaziabad’s Kavi Nagar, which was made to look like the headquarters of an embassy. The police also reportedly arrested 45-year-old Harsh Vardhan Jain for posing as the ambassador of multiple “micronations” not recognised by any sovereign country – including West Arctica, Saborga, Poulvia, and Ladonia.
According to The Indian Express, Jain had transformed the rented house into what looked like a functioning diplomatic mission: national flags, official-looking vehicles, fake credentials, and the air of international legitimacy.
“He used the guise of diplomacy to influence businessmen, promise them access to international markets, and run a hawala network through shell companies,” the police said in its statement to the press, The Indian Express reported.
The fake embassy setup helped him appear credible while scamming people looking for foreign investment or work permits, the police told The Indian Express.
The Additional Director General of Police (ADG) Law and Order, Uttar Pradesh, told ANI that the police seized four vehicles with diplomatic number plates, along with 12 diplomatic passports of micronations, forged documents with the seal of the Ministry of External Affairs, and two forged PAN cards. Moreover, police also recovered 34 seals of various countries and companies, two forged press cards, Rs 44.7 lakh in cash, and foreign currency of several countries and documents of many companies.
According to The Indian Express, in 2011, the Ghaziabad police had booked Jain for illegally possessing a satellite phone, a case still on record at the Kavi Nagar Police Station.
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