NEW DELHI – Indian authorities have arrested a man in Uttar Pradesh for allegedly running a fake embassy and scamming job seekers with false promises of overseas employment.

The suspect, 47-year-old Harsh Vardhan Jain, is accused of operating what he claimed was the “West Arctic Embassy” from a rented residence in Ghaziabad, a city near New Delhi. According to police, Jain falsely presented himself as an ambassador for fictitious nations such as West Arctica, Saborga, Poulvia, and Lodonia.

To make his operation appear legitimate, Jain reportedly used vehicles with counterfeit diplomatic license plates and circulated edited photographs of himself alongside Indian political figures.

Police said Jain’s main activities included acting as a middleman for job placements abroad, operating hawala money transfers via shell companies, and engaging in money laundering.

During a recent raid on his property, law enforcement officials seized $53,500 in cash, along with forged passports and fabricated documents that appeared to carry official seals from India’s Ministry of External Affairs.

One of the fictional countries Jain claimed to represent, Westarctica, is actually a U.S.-based nonprofit focused on the environment and science in Western Antarctica. In a statement, Westarctica confirmed that Jain had made a donation and was given the honorary title of “Honorary Consul to India”, but stressed he was never appointed as an ambassador or given any formal authority.

Attempts to reach Jain or his representatives for comment were unsuccessful.