Victim couple say that they got lured by Instagram post of the fraudulent company showcasing success stories of people placed abroad
In total, the couple paid around 34.53 lakh Nepalese Rupees to the scamsters. REPRESENTATION PIC/ISTOCK
A Nepalese national, residing at Kinjal Residency, Agripada, has lodged a complaint with Kandivli police station alleging that he and his wife were cheated of Rs 27.44 lakh by two individuals who allegedly promised them lucrative work and dependent visas for the United Kingdom (UK), but disappeared after taking money.
According to police sources, Vikas Vidurkumar Khatiwada, 39, who runs an engineering consultancy, stated to the police that in June 2024, his wife Monika Dahal, 26, who was then in Nepal, came across Achieve International’s Instagram profile, which showcased alleged success stories of overseas employment in the UK, Canada, and Europe. Contacting the number listed, she spoke to a woman identifying herself as Akanksha Tiwari, who claimed to be a senior consultant with the company.
Khatiwada met Tiwari near Raghuleela Mall, Kandivli West, where she informed him that the total cost for processing UK jobs and dependent visas would be approximately Rs 27 lakh. She allegedly took Rs 2 lakh in cash and the couple’s passports, promising to start the process.
Subsequently, on Tiwari’s instructions, Khatiwada transferred multiple payments through bank cheques and cash handovers in Nepal, amounting to 34.53 lakh Nepalese Rupees (around Rs 21.69 lakh), to persons identified as Rajesh Khadka and Pawan, who claimed to be staff of Achieve International.
However, months passed with no visa issuance or response from the company. Upon checking, Khatiwada’s Mumbai associate Javed Mohammed Hanif Sheikh found that the so-called offices of Achieve International at both Raghuleela Mall in Kandivli West and Synergy Building in Kachpada, Malad West, had been shut down.
Khatiwada, in his complaint, provided the police with all relevant documents, evidence, invoice copies, sponsorship certificates, MoU agreements, and other details of interactions with individuals posing as UK employers.
According to the complaint, between June 2024 and May 2025, Akanksha Tiwari and one Rohit Sonagara, her accomplice, fraudulently took money from the couple under the pretext of visa processing and job placement and then vanished, switching off their phones and deleting their social media presence. “We have registered a case under relevant sections of BNS on Thursday, and an investigation into the interstate visa fraud racket is underway,” said Senior Police Inspector Karan Sonkawade from Kandivli police station. Looking at their modus, many more complaints could be filed, he added.
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