Poonthura woman loses lakhs in Jordan visa scam
Thiruvananthapuram: Amid moves to hand over the probe into the Jordan visa fraud to crime branch, a Poonthura-based woman on Saturday alleged that the accused in the case defrauded Rs 4 lakh from her and her husband by offering them Israeli work visas, last year.
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The accused, Biju Jalas, 44, of Thumba, took John Mary, 48, and her husband Romance, 52, to Jordan on Jan 7, 2024, promising Israeli work visas with an attractive salary. After reaching Jordan, the couple were placed in separate congested rooms for nearly three weeks without proper food and water.
In the meantime, Romance died of a heart attack. Mary struggled to bring his body back home as the agent did not provide her any help.
"I went through the toughest days of my life. Communication was also difficult as I did not even know the language there. We boarded the flight dreaming of a better life and to provide excellent education to our daughters. But his death shattered me completely, and the loss was something irreversible. The Indian Embassy in Jordan helped me travel back to India with his body, but I had to arrange an additional Rs 5 lakh. I became even more in debt, and the thought that I was alone in the journey ahead affected my mental health.
No person should suffer like this. The agent made us believe that the cost of an Israeli visa is much less in Jordan and the process was also easier. But it was a lie. He deserves maximum punishment," said Mary.
She said that when she requested her money back, the accused refused to provide her any.
The fraud came to light only on Feb 10, 2025, after Thumba native Thomas Gabriel Pereira, 47, was shot dead by Jordanian soldiers while attempting to sneak into Israel through the Jordan border. His brother-in-law, Edison, 44, was also injured in the leg in the firing. Edison was later deported back to India by Jordan, and it was he who informed the relatives about Thomas's death.
Poonthura natives Jincy, 32, her husband Norman, 35, Ajeesh, 28, Judit, 29, and Binu, 22, were also reportedly cheated by the same accused. All of them had to leave Jordan after failing to get Israeli work visas.
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