UP Fake Degree Scam: The mastermind of a massive interstate fake degree scam, Dhanesh Mishra, on Saturday, confessed that 300 individuals landed government jobs using counterfeit certificates provided by him. The Special Task Force (STF) of Uttar Pradesh busted an interstate educational certificate racket arresting the mastermind from Agra on March 19 for producing and distributing fake educational documents of various universities.
The accused produced fake certificates of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) along with other prestigious institutions. According to a report by Jagran.com, mark sheets and degrees of the Directorate of Distance Education, run under Lalit Narayan Mithila University, are being sold openly outside the state.
The arrest followed intelligence gathering by the STF, which had been receiving information about a gang operating in UP and neighbouring states, defrauding individuals by supplying fake educational documents. Mishra, during the investigation, confessed to running the illegal business for two years, guaranteeing authenticity verification to those purchasing the fake degrees.
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The STF has recovered over 900 fake mark sheets from 40 different universities across the country. The other recovered materials include 104 blank certificates, four laptops and a printer. Notably, these mark sheets also include the ones from the Directorate of Distance Education, Mithila University which had closed its admission process in the Directorate of Distance Education for the last five years. Despite this, scammers were selling fake backdated degrees from Mithila University.
Degrees Were Sold In Rs 20,000 To 2.5 Lakh
Dhanesh revealed that he customised degrees and mark-sheets of various universities on demand. To date, he has produced over 8,000 fake documents. The accused charged different amounts for different degrees. Professional course certificates, such as B.Pharma, D.Pharma, and MBA, were sold for Rs 2-2.5 lakh, while BA and B.Com mark sheets were priced between Rs 20,000-50,000.