Alappuzha: Kainadi Police have arrested Thajuddin, 54, (aka Taufique) of Nedumangadu in Thiruvananthapuram for defrauding crores of rupees by promising various jobs in foreign countries.

He was arrested by a team from the Kainadi police from Chennai. Police said he had been absconding for more than a year in cheating cases registered in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Thrissur, Thalassery, and Wadakkancherry in Palakkad.

Police said in 2022, Thajuddin started Buzz Brain Management Pvt Ltd in Coimbatore to recruit workers for jobs in foreign countries. He selected staff online via an App and subsequently established the company in the names of those chosen as employees.

The building's rent agreement and the company's accounts were opened in the name of these staff. But he would withdraw money coming into the account using ATM cards. During that period, he was known as Pradeep Nair.

After starting the company, he collected approximately Rs 1.5 crore from about 30 people from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur districts, police said.

The fraud came to light when duped job aspirants tried to contact him. After their futile attempts, they filed complaints and registered cases at various police stations from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur.

After determining that Pradeep Nair was indeed Thajuddin, the police searched for him in Thiruvananthapuram, Coimbatore, Chennai, and Bengaluru. The Kainadi police team apprehended him from a guesthouse in the Koyambedu area of Chennai.

He was caught carrying a laptop, mobile phones, and around 15 ATM cards. He also made a fake Aadhaar card, in which he was named Santosh. On further investigation, police found out that he was running an establishment called Enlightlink in Kozhikode using the fake Aadhaar.

The accused was presented before a judicial first-class magistrate and remanded to Alappuzha sub-jail for 14 days.

The accused was arrested by a team of police officers led by Ambalapuzha DySP KN Rajesh, Kainady CI R Rajeev, and senior civil police officers Sanoj and Samjith.