A judicial magistrate has convicted four individuals, including a student, for using fake documents, including a forged University of Karachi (KU) degree, to obtain a US student visa.
Judicial Magistrate (South) Sajjad Ali Jamali sentenced Priyanka Devi, a student, along with consultant Marium Adil and accomplices Syed Aman Naeem and Rasheed, under charges of forgery and cheating under the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).
Priyanka received a combined jail term of six years for forgery, using forged documents, and cheating, while the co-accused were sentenced to two years of jail each for forgery offence. Additionally, fines were imposed, with failure to pay resulting in extended imprisonment.
The court condemned the circulation of fake degrees, highlighting the threat they pose to societal and institutional integrity.
Priyanka was found to have knowingly submitted forged documents three times to the US Consulate in Karachi, including a fake BBA degree declared fake by KU.
READ: Study in UK: Fee structure update for Pakistani, international students
According to Muhamad Sadiq Metlo, assistant director legal of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the case originated from a complaint by the US Consulate in February, alleging that Priyanka, who had completed only intermediate studies, used bogus credentials to apply for an F-1 student visa.
Last year in Oct, Priyanka admitted to presenting the counterfeit documents during an interview.
The court order revealed that Priyanka consulted Marium Adil of Global Step for assistance, where the consultant, Marium, advised her to use forged credentials to secure admissions to universities in the US.
Syed Aman Naeem arranged the counterfeit KU degree, while the accused compiled other fraudulent documents, including bank statements and sponsorship letters.
Source: Dawn