Lucknow (UP) | The Special Task Force (STF) of Uttar Pradesh Police is investigating suspected hawala dealings of a self-proclaimed diplomat, who ran a fake 'embassy' of a fictitious nation 'West Arctica' that was busted in Ghaziabad's Kavinagar area, a senior official said in Thursday.
Officials believe the lavish rented bungalow (KB-35) served as the central hub for all illegal financial operations.
Harshvardhan Jain (47), the mastermind arrested by the STF on Tuesday, is now investigated for his international financial dealings.
STF's Senior Superintendent of Police Sushil Ghule stated on Thursday that Jain had established over a dozen firms in various European countries, often with partners.
Senior STF officials strongly suspect that Jain exploited these companies to operate an extensive hawala network.
The STF's initial investigation revealed that Jain, who holds a BBA degree from Ghaziabad and an MBA degree from London, cultivated connections with prominent figures in the international underworld.
He reportedly came into contact with controversial godman Chandraswami in 2000, who allegedly introduced him to notorious arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi and Ehsan Ali Syed, a Hyderabad native with Turkish citizenship, the STF said.
The STF confirmed that Jain established more than a dozen companies in London specifically with Syed and these were used for "brokerage and hawala" operations.
This suggests a sophisticated money laundering network operating under the facade of legitimate business, it said.
Jain's international movements further highlight a complex financial web, the STF said.
After relocating to Dubai in 2006, he formed several companies with Shafiq (from Hyderabad) and Ibrahim (from Dubai). He returned to India in 2011 and, since 2012, began styling himself as an advisor or ambassador to various non-existent or unrecognised 'micronations' such as "Saborga", "Lodonia", "Poulvia.'
It was under the guise of these fictitious diplomatic identities that he allegedly defrauded individuals with promises of overseas jobs and visas, often using vehicles equipped with fake diplomatic licence plates.
The STF's Tuesday raid on his Kavinagar residence unearthed a cache of incriminating evidence, including 44.7 lakh in cash, foreign currencies, multiple forged diplomatic passports, 18 fake diplomatic number plates, forged seals of the Ministry of External Affairs, and seals of companies from 34 countries.
While the STF focuses on the international hawala links, local police are also scrutinizing how Jain managed to run such an elaborate con job so openly for an extended period.
"We are looking into how Jain ran his operations and for how many years was he active," a senior Ghaziabad police official told PTI.
Jain was previously arrested in 2011 after central agencies traced an unauthorized satellite phone he had brought from South Africa. While no anti-national activities were found then, a case was registered.
According to STF officials, Syed is jailed in Switzerland for a loan fraud.
Investigations reveal that Chandraswami allegedly sent Jain to London to meet Syed, where they set up multiple shell companies for large-scale brokerage and hawala operations.
Syed's firm, Western Advisory Group, reportedly scammed 25 million pounds between 2008-2011 in brokerage fees for facilitating loans.
Syed was arrested in London in November 2022, extradited to Switzerland in July 2023, and subsequently sentenced by a Zurich court to six and a half years for fraud.
Authorities are now intensely investigating Jain's involvement with Syed.
Jain's financial scrutiny also shows he used two PAN cards, with investigations ongoing into associated bank accounts in India and abroad.
