The Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Odisha, has busted a major Haj pilgrimage fraud by arresting one accused from Mumbai. The accused, Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh was produced before the Designated Court under OPID Act, Balasore, on Monday after being brought to the state on a transit remand. Nabeel was arrested based on the complaint filed by Mir Khursid of Kazimahala under Dhamnagar police station in Bhadrak against the proprietors of ‘Al-Adam Tour & Travels’.
The tour and travels agency was allegedly run by Firdos Abdul Mubin Shaikh, her son Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh and daughter Saima Anjum Shaikh, and Md. Bismillah Shaikh, the owner of AlIzma Tours & Travels of Vikhroli Kurla, West Mumbai. It was alleged 189 devotees were duped of Rs 1.
2 crore during the period from 2019-23 to arrange their pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia on the eve of UMRAH. The EOW officials informed that the owners of both the tours and travels neither did they take the prospective pilgrims on pilgrimage nor did they refund the amount collected from them. How The Fraud Took Place? During the period from 2019-23, the accused proprietors of M/s Al-Adam Tour & Travel Agency floated advertisements on social media and distributed leaflets containing the lucrative packages, contact details and lured Muslim devotees to avail the opportunity under two of their tour packages of Rs 45,786 and Rs 50,786 per individual pilgrim to go on UMRAH pilgrimage to Arab countries like Mecca-Madina, EOW said in a release.
Senior.