Mercedes Benz S-Class, Audi A4 Luxury Sedans Seized From Man Running 'Fake Embassy'
A very unique and elaborate scam has recently been exposed by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF). The authorities have managed to dismantle a fake “embassy” which was being run by a man from Ghaziabad. This particular man had rented a home in an upscale society of Ghaziabad and made it look official. During the raid, an Audi, a Mercedes-Benz, and two Hyundai Sonata cars with fake embassy number plates, along with cash and luxury watches, have been seized.
Fake “embassy” raided in Ghaziabad
According to the reports, the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force raided a house in the Kavi Nagar area, which is an upscale society in Ghaziabad. It was found that this particular rented home was being portrayed as an “embassy” by a man named Har Vhan Jen. He is also referred to as Harsh Vardhan Jain, alias Hersh Wadhan and Haran.
This man portrayed himself as a high-ranking diplomat and adopted the personas of Consul and Ambassador for various micronations. For those who may not be aware, micronations are small, largely unrecognized, self-proclaimed countries. Haran mainly claimed to represent four micronations, namely West Arctica, Saborga, Pulvia (likely a fake country), and Londonia (also fake to resemble London).
In the fake embassy, Haran displayed false diplomatic seals and flags to mislead innocent people. He also showcased that he had a lot of close connections with Indian politicians and other country presidents using morphed photographs. The man also used a number of fake press cards and company documents to make his act more believable.
With this elaborate fake embassy scam, Har Vhan Jen would lure in job-seekers. He would promise them employment opportunities in these so-called foreign embassies. Jain would also offer “special facilities” to attract potential victims and then defraud them after they paid him money for the so-called jobs.
What was seized during the fake “embassy” raid?
During the raid organized by the STF after a tip-off, four luxury cars were seized from the rented house in Kavi Nagar, Ghaziabad. These included a black Audi A4, a black Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and two white Hyundai Sonata sedans. All four of these vehicles were given fake diplomatic number plates.
They were designed in such a way that they would easily help in evading traffic stops and police checks. In addition to these, 12 fake diplomatic passports of the micronations were found in the fake “embassy.” As for the cash, a total of Rs 44,70,000 in Indian currency was recovered.
On top of it, foreign exchange from multiple countries, indicating hawala transactions, was also recovered from Jen’s house. Other notable items seized from Jen include a collection of high-end luxury watches, forged Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) documents, two fake PAN cards, 34 forged seals of various countries, companies, and government bodies, and two fake press cards.
This particular fake “embassy” was set up in 2017 and had been working for a long time. As for the history of Har Vhan Jen, he was previously arrested back in 2011. At the time, a fake satellite phone was recovered from him. Currently, Jen is being interrogated by the Uttar Pradesh STF, and they have been tracing his financial trail. It is also being identified if he has more accomplices with him in this fake “embassy” scam.