Three persons running an immigration consultancy firm in Gujarat’s capital Gandhinagar were arrested by the state Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday for allegedly forging bank account statements of visa seekers, said an official.

Investigation revealed that the accused trio used to prepare fake statements of their clients’ bank accounts and attach the forged documents with their visa applications to get speedy approval from the authorities, said a release by the state CID (Crime and Railways).

Embassy officials review bank statements to ensure that visa seekers meet the financial requirements for their intended stay in the host country.

A bank statement would show that the applicant has enough cash in his account to support him during the visit.

Recently, the CID received inputs that people were acquiring student visas as well as work permits of countries like the US and Canada by submitting forged bank documents and fake certificates, said the release.

Based on the tip-off, the CID had raided 17 different places across Gujarat on December 15 and found some suspicious material on the premises of ‘Future Planning Visa Consultancy’, situated in the Kudasan area of Gandhinagar.

For a detailed investigation, the CID had seized a laptop, a mobile, a pen drive and a computer hard disk from the spot and sent it to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Gandhinagar for analysis, said the release.

Experts at the FSL found forged account statements of various banks in a mobile phone belonging to the accused, said the release.

Based on the FSL report, the CID registered a case and arrested Avkash Chaudhary, Sahil Patel and Krunal Varia on Wednesday on the charges of criminal conspiracy and forgery under sections 120-b, 467 and 468 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), said the release.

The arrests come a day after a chartered Airbus A340 carrying 276 passengers landed in Mumbai, four days after it was grounded in France over suspected human trafficking. Most of those on board the plane were from Gujarat, said officials.

Police will coordinate with the passengers when they reach Gujarat from Mumbai to find out the agents and agencies involved and whether documents provided to them to migrate to the US and other countries were forged, Superintendent of Police, CID (Crime), Sanjay Kharat, had said earlier.