Former kabaddi player who moved to Canada arrested in Ahmedabad over 2019 immigration fraud

The Delhi Police have arrested a Canada-based agent, wanted in a six-year-old case for allegedly sending passengers abroad on forged documents, from Ahmedabad, an official said on Friday.

The accused has been identified as Guramritpal Singh Multani, alias Pali (54), a resident of Canada.

"Pali was wanted in a case registered in 2019 after nine Indians were deported from Ethiopia for carrying forged Continuous Discharge Certificates (CDCs), allegedly issued in the name of the Government of Samoa," a senior police officer said.

The officer further said that Pali was apprehended on September 29 at the Ahmedabad airport, soon after his return to India, and was brought to New Delhi on Thursday.

During interrogation, he revealed that he had once been a national-level kabaddi player and had represented a university in Punjab, as well as a sports club in Canada, before turning to sending people abroad on fraudulent documents for quick profits.

The police said he moved to Canada with his family in 1995 and secured permanent residency in 1999.

"In 2019, he arranged fake CDCs for two passengers through his associate Manjeet from Jalandhar, charging Rs 20 lakh each. Five accused have already been arrested earlier in the same case," the officer added.

The police said he has seven cases of a similar nature against him, mostly registered at the IGI Airport police station between 2009 and 2021. His previous involvements include cases under cheating, forgery, conspiracy, and sections of the Passports Act.

"The 2019 case was registered on a complaint by our immigration authorities after the Samoan government confirmed that the CDCs recovered from deported passengers were forged," the officer said.

During the investigation, two passengers disclosed that Pali was the agent who had facilitated the documents, said the officer, adding that he had been evading arrest for years while living in Canada.

The police said a further probe was under way to establish his network and identify others linked to the racket.