Under the guise of the Pakistan Bar Association, 39 suspects allegedly posed as lawyers at the Austrian embassy – and obtained Schengen visas through fraud!
Alarm message from Pakistan: According to investigative authorities, 39 compatriots have “lost”. As months of internal investigation have revealed, the suspects allegedly misused the letterheads of the Bar Association of the Supreme Court of Pakistan last summer. According to the country’s highest investigative authority, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), a written request was sent to the Austrian Embassy in Islamabad under the guise of the chamber.
Official request was fake
The supposedly official letter allegedly submitted applications for Schengen visas for a total of 39 purported lawyers and official members of the Pakistan Bar Association. According to the researchers, these were ultimately issued by the red-white-red body.
Previous internal checks at the bar revealed that the unknown fraudsters had disguised the document with a previously used reference number. Which would indicate an insider. The researchers assume that the 39 fake lawyers actually managed to enter the EU with the fraudulent visas.
The authorities have rejected an application
And still stay in the Schengen area. Domestic authorities are aware of the fraud case – although the number of suspects varies: “According to current knowledge, we can confirm that 35 people applied for a visa at the Austrian Embassy in Islamabad after submitting a letter. The applications were consulted with the Ministry of the Interior and all other Schengen Member States in accordance with legal requirements. In one case these led to a rejection,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vienna said.
Source: Krone
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