Indian family, friends duped by recruitment firm in Dubai

Six Indians, including a brother-sister duo, were duped by a bogus recruitment firm in Dubai which took money from them on the pretext of providing jobs, a media report said Monday.

Ishrat Fathima, an HR professional from Tamil Nadu, told Khaleej Times that she persuaded her younger brother, a cousin and three of their friends to pay Rs one lakh (around Dh 5300) to be hired by the same HR consultancy company where she worked.

"I did not know it was a trap as I worked for the company for a month and they paid me my salary on time. Now my family is furious and they are all demanding money from me. But how will I cough up Rs 500,000 when I myself lost money and got cheated?" Fathima, 27, said.

The woman said she came on a visit visa to Dubai on April 2018 and stayed with a family member. "I had applied for jobs online and got a call from a company called Great Channel HR consultancy. After the interview, they offered me a job for Dh2,500 plus incentives."
"I was sent back to India on the promise that I will receive my employment visa soon. But a month later, the company asked me to come back again on visit. When I questioned them, they said the employment visa can only be stamped on my passport and refused to send a soft copy. I had no choice as I had already paid them Dh3,500."
"I knew things were fishy. So, finally I took up another job offer from one of their clients, and thought that was the end of all my troubles in the UAE. But I was wrong."
"One day the Business Development Manager asked me to recommend five people that I know for other job postings. As my brother Ibrahim and cousin Irfan were looking for opportunities in Dubai, I referred them. And they referred three of their close friends - Vinod, Vignesh and Yogesh - all young graduates."
"A few days after the money was sent, when I turned up for work as usual, I found that the company was closed. The owner has vanished with all our money."