Indian police uncover fake Canadian visa scam
November 6, 2009
Anil Kumar allegedly heads a ring that may have cheated victims out of more than $650,000.
TORONTO STAR/NEW DELHI POLICE
New Delhi – Indian police say they have cracked a ring of criminals who conspired to operate one of the biggest fake visa scams in years involving Canada.
The alleged crooks lurked on the leafy streets outside Canada’s diplomatic mission in New Delhi, as well as in the office of a bogus travel and tourism company in Punjab, a state in northwestern India.
The Star has learned Indian police have made three arrests in New Delhi and two more in Punjab, charging five men with making false documents, passing fake documents as genuine and criminal conspiracy. Police are still searching for at least three others.
The fake visa service charged Indians as much as $21,000 to obtain bogus visas, police said, adding they believe the ring operated through a company called Kaavi Tour and Travels in Chandigarh, Punjab’s capital city.
Documents and files seized by police indicate the ring, allegedly headed by a man named Anil Kumar – who has at least three aliases – may have cheated victims out of more than $650,000. That would make it one of the biggest visa fraud operations police here have exposed in years.
“People in Punjab are so desperate to get to Canada for work, that’s why they fall into this,” New Delhi police sub-inspector M.P.
Saini said.
Canadian High Commission staff say privately that immigration consultants such as Kumar continue to be a vexing problem. Immigration agents are not regulated and the business has become huge, particularly in Chandigarh, where Canada is the only foreign country with a visa-granting office.
“This latest one is big,” said a Western diplomat familiar with the Kumar case. “It’s a huge ball of yarn. We keep unwinding it and finding more leads to more victims and more crooks.”
New Delhi police said they learned about Kumar’s alleged criminal operation on Oct. 13 when a 22-year-old Punjabi man named Sukhdeep Singh filed a complaint, saying that he and three relatives had been fleeced out of $32,000.
In late August, Singh went to the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi to apply for a visa to Canada. He said a man named Sandeep Kaul approached him on the street outside the high commission and told him he could guarantee Singh a visa for
$16,000.
Singh and three relatives paid Kaul a collective $32,000 – half his asking price of $64,000 – in advance. A day later, Kaul filed
visa applications on behalf of Singh and his relative. When an immigration agent denied those applications, Kaul put Singh and the others in contact with Kumar, the scam’s alleged ringleader in Punjab.
Singh and his relatives were later told Kumar has secured visas for each of them as promised and, indeed, they were given their passports with what appeared to be visas. But Singh learned the visas were fake after taking them to the Canadian mission in Chandigarh to confirm their authenticity.
Instead of paying the remaining $32,000, Singh called police, who set up a sting operation.
Kaul and two other Delhi men, Jassi Khassria and Lakhander Singh, were arrested in New Delhi near the Nehru Park metro station as they waited, police say, for Singh to show up with their money.
Police raided Kaul’s apartment and discovered an embossing machine, colour photocopier, fake income tax returns and school records – one document the Star reviewed was an “Employemant Agreement” with an Alberta company called “IS2 Staffing Services” – that probably would have been used to try to obtain visas.
Police continue to hunt for Kumar.
Roughly 30 visa applications have been linked to Kumar, who used the same mobile phone number as a contact on various applications.
Kaul and the other men have not yet had bail hearings or submitted their pleas.
Their next court appearance is Nov. 14. The five are being held at New Delhi’s Tihar Jail and face at least seven years in prison if convicted.
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Real estate fees could be slashed
November 4, 2009
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Canadians in the housing market will pay less in realty commissions and fees if the federal Competition Bureau has its way.
In a landmark investigation, the bureau has concluded the Canadian Real Estate Association has anti-competitive rules and must change its ways, according to documents obtained by the Star.
Details of a settlement have yet to be decided, but the bureau’s findings are expected to have a profound impact on the real estate industry – by permitting more innovative discount brokers into the market while allowing sellers to list their properties less expensively on the Multiple Listing Service.
With a membership of more than 96,000, Ottawa-based CREA is the largest real estate organization in Canada and represents the majority of the nation’s realtors.
“The Bureau is concerned that CREA’s rules have restricted consumer choice and limited the scope of alternative business models,” says an internal memo by CREA president Dale Ripplinger. “Unfortunately, the Bureau seems to believe that CREA’s rules … create restrictions and barriers.”
The bureau launched its investigation in 2007. Consumers have complained in the past about high realty fees and the need for more affordable services. The vendor of an average-priced $400,000 home in Toronto can pay a commission of as much as 5 per cent, or $20,000.
“This is absolute, total vindication,” says Lawrence Dale, an owner of now-defunct Realtysellers, a Toronto-based discount broker that closed in 2006. “Once they’ve reached their settlement it means that the average guy on the street will be able to choose their real estate services and pay less for them.”
CREA executives met with the bureau on Oct. 23 to hear the long-anticipated results, according to the letter. “At that meeting the Bureau set out the conclusions of their inquiry and their proposed remedy,” says Ripplinger. “The Bureau’s position is that if CREA does not remove these restrictions, the Commissioner of Competiton will initiate an application before the Competition Tribunal.”
Ripplinger says CREA decided not to go before the tribunal, which can administer penalties, but is pursuing a settlement.
According to Ripplinger, CREA rules the bureau wants changed include those that say the listing realtor must act as the agent of the seller and receive and present all offers to the seller, and property information cannot be posted on the Multiple Listing Service without an agent representing the seller.
Changes to these rules would mean offers could be sent directly to the seller without the involvement of the listing agent. Consumers could likely have their listings posted on the MLS for a small fee.
Dale and partner Stephen Moranis claim they were forced to shut down their company because of rules implemented in 2007 by the realtor’s association. Realtysellers offered services such as allowing consumers to post listings for a few hundred dollars on the MLS website, where more than 90 per cent of all home sales are made. The company is suing CREA and the Toronto Real Estate Board.
CREA owns the rights to the MLS.
In a separate lawsuit against TREB, Fraser Beach, another Toronto realtor, alleges the organization terminated his MLS access because he launched a discount brokerage service. A decision by Ontario Superior Court of Ontario Justice David Brown is expected soon.
TREB has argued it didn’t block his access to the MLS for competitive reasons, but simply because he did not follow membership rules.
Both CREA and TREB have denied all allegations. A Toronto Real Estate Board spokesperson says the board does not comment on ongoing legal matters. Officials of the Competition Bureau were not available for comment Sunday.
Although the real estate association has agreed to reach a settlement, Ripplinger stressed “CREA does not agree with the Bureau’s findings and conclusions, either as a matter of fact or as a matter of law.” The association has called an emergency meeting for all member boards in December to discuss rule changes demanded by the Bureau.
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Jay-Z brings fans tricks and treats
November 2, 2009
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/music/musicreview/article/719552–jay-z-brings-fans-tricks-and-treats
Jay-Z sure knows how to make an entrance.
A recording of the Beastie Boys’ “No Sleep Til Brooklyn” launched a 10-minute video countdown for the New York rapper’s appearance at the Air Canada Centre on Halloween night.
The arena lights dimmed. With 28 seconds to go, the music stopped and the crowd of 14,000 began chanting “Hova,” one of the entertainer’s many aliases, and put their thumbs and forefingers together in the shape of his diamond logo.
Right on cue, the performer rose up from a trap door, clad in black and wearing a trick-or-treat friendly hockey mask which he quickly exchanged for sunglasses as the band introduced “Run This Town.”
That was followed by “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune),” another selection from current album The Blueprint 3, which the performer referred to as “superhero music.”
That may be the better characterization of Jay-Z’s status in hip hop, than the messianic position he’s more commonly afforded given his longevity and propensity for self-attached monikers like (Je)Hova and “The Rock of Gibraltar.”
His transition from teen drug dealer to rapper (with 1996’s Reasonable Doubt), to record company president, to husband of squeaky-clean diva Beyoncé to surpassing Elvis Presley’s record with 11 No. 1 albums is an extraordinary feat.
And having tempered the misogynistic lyrics and amped up his charitable efforts, Jay-Z who turns 40 next month, is exuding Clark Kent vulnerability these days. A recent sit-down with Oprah Winfrey found him recalling the pain of being abandoned by his father. His expressions of gratitude to attendees certainly seemed sincere at Saturday’s show, where tickets were priced up to $175.
He generously shared the spotlight, bringing back opening acts, N.E.R.D.’s Pharrell Williams and up-and-coming rapper J. Cole, during his 90-minute set, allowing local rapper Drake his first performance (“Successful”) since undergoing knee surgery last month and shouting out Toronto’s Kardinal Offishall in the audience.
Jay-Z, who last played the arena in April 2008, co-headlining with Mary J. Blige, performed hits such as, “99 Problems,” “Hard Knock Life” “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” and “Big Pimpin’.”
With a clothing line, sports clubs and co-ownership of the New Jersey Nets, rap could have just become Jay-Z’s calling card, but he’s still dominating the genre.
Though The Blueprint 3 debuted to mixed reviews in September, it’s proved a contender, spawning a number of gems – “Thank You,” “Empire State of Mind” and “Already Home”– which were wildly embraced at the concert.
“I am a multi millionaire/So how is it/I’m still the hardest nigga here?” Jay-Z wonders in “D.O.A.,” echoing others’ consternation about his staying power.
It’s the authority of his against-the-odds ascendance; effective producers who find him sing-along choruses and catchy beats; and a knack for irreverent stick-to-your-ribs lines like: “This ain’t for sing-a-longs/This is Sinatra at the opera/Bring a blond/Preferably with a fat ass/Who can sing-a-song.”
The show was enthralling, but not ideal: Jay-Z’s touring voice is raggedy, his focus on “the haters” gets tiresome and hypeman Memphis Bleek is ineffectual.
Among the highlights: back-up vocalist Bridget Kelly’s powerful turn on Alicia Keys “Empire State of Mind” hook; the 10-piece band’s killing horn section; and the unique video towers that recreated the Big Apple skyline.
With a nod to self-actualizing books like The Seat of the Soul and The Celestine Prophecy, which he told Winfrey are nightstand staples, he now desires to encourage others.
“It sounds like a cliché, but you can’t let nobody block your dreams,” he counselled the ACC crowd. “If you have so much ambition, you will be so successful.”
He says it better on “So Ambitious”:
“I felt so inspired by what my teacher said/Said I’d either be dead or be a reefer head … I went from pauper to the president/Every deal I ever made set precedent … Dear Teacher, you’re probably somewhere near a speaker/I’m balling outta control, can you hear my sneakers?”
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Jay-Z brings fans tricks and treats
November 2, 2009
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/music/musicreview/article/719552–jay-z-brings-fans-tricks-and-treats
Jay-Z sure knows how to make an entrance.
A recording of the Beastie Boys’ “No Sleep Til Brooklyn” launched a 10-minute video countdown for the New York rapper’s appearance at the Air Canada Centre on Halloween night.
The arena lights dimmed. With 28 seconds to go, the music stopped and the crowd of 14,000 began chanting “Hova,” one of the entertainer’s many aliases, and put their thumbs and forefingers together in the shape of his diamond logo.
Right on cue, the performer rose up from a trap door, clad in black and wearing a trick-or-treat friendly hockey mask which he quickly exchanged for sunglasses as the band introduced “Run This Town.”
That was followed by “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune),” another selection from current album The Blueprint 3, which the performer referred to as “superhero music.”
That may be the better characterization of Jay-Z’s status in hip hop, than the messianic position he’s more commonly afforded given his longevity and propensity for self-attached monikers like (Je)Hova and “The Rock of Gibraltar.”
His transition from teen drug dealer to rapper (with 1996’s Reasonable Doubt), to record company president, to husband of squeaky-clean diva Beyoncé to surpassing Elvis Presley’s record with 11 No. 1 albums is an extraordinary feat.
And having tempered the misogynistic lyrics and amped up his charitable efforts, Jay-Z who turns 40 next month, is exuding Clark Kent vulnerability these days. A recent sit-down with Oprah Winfrey found him recalling the pain of being abandoned by his father. His expressions of gratitude to attendees certainly seemed sincere at Saturday’s show, where tickets were priced up to $175.
He generously shared the spotlight, bringing back opening acts, N.E.R.D.’s Pharrell Williams and up-and-coming rapper J. Cole, during his 90-minute set, allowing local rapper Drake his first performance (“Successful”) since undergoing knee surgery last month and shouting out Toronto’s Kardinal Offishall in the audience.
Jay-Z, who last played the arena in April 2008, co-headlining with Mary J. Blige, performed hits such as, “99 Problems,” “Hard Knock Life” “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” and “Big Pimpin’.”
With a clothing line, sports clubs and co-ownership of the New Jersey Nets, rap could have just become Jay-Z’s calling card, but he’s still dominating the genre.
Though The Blueprint 3 debuted to mixed reviews in September, it’s proved a contender, spawning a number of gems – “Thank You,” “Empire State of Mind” and “Already Home”– which were wildly embraced at the concert.
“I am a multi millionaire/So how is it/I’m still the hardest nigga here?” Jay-Z wonders in “D.O.A.,” echoing others’ consternation about his staying power.
It’s the authority of his against-the-odds ascendance; effective producers who find him sing-along choruses and catchy beats; and a knack for irreverent stick-to-your-ribs lines like: “This ain’t for sing-a-longs/This is Sinatra at the opera/Bring a blond/Preferably with a fat ass/Who can sing-a-song.”
The show was enthralling, but not ideal: Jay-Z’s touring voice is raggedy, his focus on “the haters” gets tiresome and hypeman Memphis Bleek is ineffectual.
Among the highlights: back-up vocalist Bridget Kelly’s powerful turn on Alicia Keys “Empire State of Mind” hook; the 10-piece band’s killing horn section; and the unique video towers that recreated the Big Apple skyline.
With a nod to self-actualizing books like The Seat of the Soul and The Celestine Prophecy, which he told Winfrey are nightstand staples, he now desires to encourage others.
“It sounds like a cliché, but you can’t let nobody block your dreams,” he counselled the ACC crowd. “If you have so much ambition, you will be so successful.”
He says it better on “So Ambitious”:
“I felt so inspired by what my teacher said/Said I’d either be dead or be a reefer head … I went from pauper to the president/Every deal I ever made set precedent … Dear Teacher, you’re probably somewhere near a speaker/I’m balling outta control, can you hear my sneakers?”
Take our FREE Online Assessment Today!
http://www.akcanada.com/facebookassessment.cfm
Socialize with Abrams & Krochak
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Jay-Z brings fans tricks and treats
November 2, 2009
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/music/musicreview/article/719552–jay-z-brings-fans-tricks-and-treats
Jay-Z sure knows how to make an entrance.
A recording of the Beastie Boys’ “No Sleep Til Brooklyn” launched a 10-minute video countdown for the New York rapper’s appearance at the Air Canada Centre on Halloween night.
The arena lights dimmed. With 28 seconds to go, the music stopped and the crowd of 14,000 began chanting “Hova,” one of the entertainer’s many aliases, and put their thumbs and forefingers together in the shape of his diamond logo.
Right on cue, the performer rose up from a trap door, clad in black and wearing a trick-or-treat friendly hockey mask which he quickly exchanged for sunglasses as the band introduced “Run This Town.”
That was followed by “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune),” another selection from current album The Blueprint 3, which the performer referred to as “superhero music.”
That may be the better characterization of Jay-Z’s status in hip hop, than the messianic position he’s more commonly afforded given his longevity and propensity for self-attached monikers like (Je)Hova and “The Rock of Gibraltar.”
His transition from teen drug dealer to rapper (with 1996’s Reasonable Doubt), to record company president, to husband of squeaky-clean diva Beyoncé to surpassing Elvis Presley’s record with 11 No. 1 albums is an extraordinary feat.
And having tempered the misogynistic lyrics and amped up his charitable efforts, Jay-Z who turns 40 next month, is exuding Clark Kent vulnerability these days. A recent sit-down with Oprah Winfrey found him recalling the pain of being abandoned by his father. His expressions of gratitude to attendees certainly seemed sincere at Saturday’s show, where tickets were priced up to $175.
He generously shared the spotlight, bringing back opening acts, N.E.R.D.’s Pharrell Williams and up-and-coming rapper J. Cole, during his 90-minute set, allowing local rapper Drake his first performance (“Successful”) since undergoing knee surgery last month and shouting out Toronto’s Kardinal Offishall in the audience.
Jay-Z, who last played the arena in April 2008, co-headlining with Mary J. Blige, performed hits such as, “99 Problems,” “Hard Knock Life” “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” and “Big Pimpin’.”
With a clothing line, sports clubs and co-ownership of the New Jersey Nets, rap could have just become Jay-Z’s calling card, but he’s still dominating the genre.
Though The Blueprint 3 debuted to mixed reviews in September, it’s proved a contender, spawning a number of gems – “Thank You,” “Empire State of Mind” and “Already Home”– which were wildly embraced at the concert.
“I am a multi millionaire/So how is it/I’m still the hardest nigga here?” Jay-Z wonders in “D.O.A.,” echoing others’ consternation about his staying power.
It’s the authority of his against-the-odds ascendance; effective producers who find him sing-along choruses and catchy beats; and a knack for irreverent stick-to-your-ribs lines like: “This ain’t for sing-a-longs/This is Sinatra at the opera/Bring a blond/Preferably with a fat ass/Who can sing-a-song.”
The show was enthralling, but not ideal: Jay-Z’s touring voice is raggedy, his focus on “the haters” gets tiresome and hypeman Memphis Bleek is ineffectual.
Among the highlights: back-up vocalist Bridget Kelly’s powerful turn on Alicia Keys “Empire State of Mind” hook; the 10-piece band’s killing horn section; and the unique video towers that recreated the Big Apple skyline.
With a nod to self-actualizing books like The Seat of the Soul and The Celestine Prophecy, which he told Winfrey are nightstand staples, he now desires to encourage others.
“It sounds like a cliché, but you can’t let nobody block your dreams,” he counselled the ACC crowd. “If you have so much ambition, you will be so successful.”
He says it better on “So Ambitious”:
“I felt so inspired by what my teacher said/Said I’d either be dead or be a reefer head … I went from pauper to the president/Every deal I ever made set precedent … Dear Teacher, you’re probably somewhere near a speaker/I’m balling outta control, can you hear my sneakers?”
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