Fake job scam busted in Bahrain

Dubai, Oct 21 (IANS) A fake job scam has come to light involving a travel agency in Kerala that was trying to recruit people for non-existent jobs in a Bahrain-based firm.

Flyway Tours and Travels (FTT), a Kerala-based company, allegedly tried to run advertisements and conduct interviews for jobs that did not exist in Bahrain's Alfouz Contracting Company, the Gulf Daily News reported.

The company reportedly tried to collect recruitment and visa fees from 492 workers in the south Indian state claiming that it had been authorised by the Bahrain firm to recruit workers.

The scam came to light when FTT approached the Protector of Emigrants (PoE) office in Kerala seeking permission to run advertisements and conduct job interviews.

It attached a power of attorney to an authorisation letter under the fake letterhead of Alfouz Contracting with contact details of the company as well.

When the PoE office contacted the Bahraini firm through the Indian embassy in that Gulf nation to confirm if it was recruiting workers, it denied having ever had any link with FTT.

'Flyway Tours and Travels submitted a letter Oct 11 to the PoE office seeking permission to conduct interviews to recruit people from Kerala,' Jimmy Joseph, general manager of Alfouz Contracting, told the newspaper.

'We were shocked to see the letterhead of our company, which they had forged,' he said, adding there was even a forged seal on it.

Following subsequent investigations, it came to light that FTT was not even registered with the Indian government.

The Bahraini company has now lodged a complaint with the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan and Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.

The Indian embassy is also investigating the case.