Hotel robbery: Police stumble on illegal immigration racket

Amritsar, December 29

A probe into the dacoity in which armed robbers looted Rs 16.50 lakh from two customers in a hotel on Majitha Road, has led to detection of an illegal immigration racket. The manager of a hotel was shot at in the incident.

The ‘victims’ (two customers) were allegedly part of the racket who had come to the hotel to ‘show’ cash to the suspects for sending tickets and visas for two youths who were awaiting for the same in Delhi. The youths were promised to be sent to Australia by the racket having its members Delhi also.

On the Thursday-Friday intervening night, the police arrested a middleman, identified as Parminder Katiyal, from Nakodar area during the police raid following questioning of Ravinder Singh, aks Ricky, of Kot Khera village in Tarsikka. Ravinder was brother of a Dubai-based member of the racket. He had struck a deal with two customers — Randeep Kumar of Faridkot and Rohit of Uttarakhand who runs an immigration business in Mohali.

They along with Jatinder had assured that they would send the two youths to Australia. The deal was settled for Rs 26 lakh. The two youths had reached Delhi to board their flight. However, Jatinder demanded to see money before sending tickets and visas of the youths.

Katiyal was to take commission of Rs 1 lakh each for both youths out of Rs 26 lakh, said Varinder Singh Khosa, Assistant Commissioner of Police (North). He said police teams were also dispatched to Delhi-based members of the racket.

On Tuesday night, hotel manager Manroop Singh was shot at by four armed persons. The suspects had absconded after looting Rs 16.50 lakh from Randeep and Rohit who were putting up in the hotel when Jatinder sent his brother Ravinder Singh and three persons for checking the amount that Randeep and Rohit had. First, they checked and counted money. Later, the suspects looted Rs 16.50 lakh from Randeep and Rohit and locked them inside a hotel room.