Kolkata: The Kolkata Police has decided to record the statements of their own personnel in the ongoing fake-passport probe. The police maintained that two personnel from a Kolkata PS, who were working as verification officers, were found to have verified certain passport applications that went beyond their jurisdiction. Sources said that during the investigation, a police officer's cellphone was seized.
"Their job was to verify the documents submitted for passports. Allegedly, they failed to do so. Furthermore, even though they were responsible for police verification in one PS, they also verified documents from another station. It has also been revealed that one officer illegally conducted verification work for another," said a legal expert aiding the probe. Investigators have spoken with one of them, sources said.
Meanwhile, the questioning of the eighth accused, Dhiren Ghosh from Chakdaha, also gave cops insights into how Bangladeshis managed to reach Italy using the services of this gang. "Ghosh was working in Italy at multiple restaurants. It was here he came across Bangladeshi nationals who told him how difficult it was for them to reach Europe. Later, when Ghosh came in contact with accused Manoj Gupta, he was introduced to Samaresh and then was gradually inducted into the gang," an officer said.
According to sources, Ghosh was in Italy for nearly 10 years. After returning to the country in 2017, he got in touch with Gupta. Preliminary investigations suggest Ghosh came to this country from Bangladesh. Detectives said while in Italy, Ghosh had connections in various European countries due to his travels. Allegedly, he used these connections to help Bangladeshis — who entered the country illegally — obtain fake passports and secure visas for European countries.
An investigator said Ghosh arranged necessary provisions for sending Bangladeshis abroad. On Tuesday night, Ghosh was apprehended by a special investigation team from Lalbazar at his rented house in Madanpur, Chakdaha, where he lived with his wife and son. Investigators seized several documents.