<p>The police on Friday raided an educational firm that duped 200 students in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, promising medical admission in foreign universities.</p>.<p>The owners, identified as Gopi Venkata Rao and his wife Nikhila, managed to escape.</p>.<p>The police arrested six staff members of the firm — Shaistha Suman (25) from Bapuji Nagar; Dilip (28) and his father Edukondalu (51) from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh; Ayesha Banu (25) from Mysuru Road; and Ranganayakalu (30) and Ishaq Basha (30), both from Suddaguntepalya. They were booked for cheating and forgery.</p>.<p>The police said the accused started the consultancy firm under the banner of American Service Centre in 2011 that has its branches in Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati and Coimbatore.</p>.<p>They claimed that they had tie-ups with medical colleges in foreign countries and offered admission for students at universities in America, Guyana and China.</p>.<p>The police suspect as many as 200 students opted for the course and paid the fee for which the accused had taken the candidates on visiting visas to the universities for a campus visit.</p>.<p>“This was nothing but to convince the students and, once they paid the fees, they’d close down the firm, escape to a different place and start another firm,” said M B Boralingaiah, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast Division).</p>.<p>Using this modus, the accused have duped as many as 200 students and made away with an amount not less than Rs 25 crore, he added.</p>.<p>Based on a complaint filed by the victims at the Madiwala and Adugodi police stations, the police raided the firm and arrested the accused. But, Rao and Nikhila along with one of their associates Zameer managed to escape.</p>.<p>The police further learnt that the accused have fled the country and efforts are on to trace them.</p>.<p>Several cases are pending against the accused, including in Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati and Coimbatore.</p>
<p>The police on Friday raided an educational firm that duped 200 students in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, promising medical admission in foreign universities.</p>.<p>The owners, identified as Gopi Venkata Rao and his wife Nikhila, managed to escape.</p>.<p>The police arrested six staff members of the firm — Shaistha Suman (25) from Bapuji Nagar; Dilip (28) and his father Edukondalu (51) from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh; Ayesha Banu (25) from Mysuru Road; and Ranganayakalu (30) and Ishaq Basha (30), both from Suddaguntepalya. They were booked for cheating and forgery.</p>.<p>The police said the accused started the consultancy firm under the banner of American Service Centre in 2011 that has its branches in Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati and Coimbatore.</p>.<p>They claimed that they had tie-ups with medical colleges in foreign countries and offered admission for students at universities in America, Guyana and China.</p>.<p>The police suspect as many as 200 students opted for the course and paid the fee for which the accused had taken the candidates on visiting visas to the universities for a campus visit.</p>.<p>“This was nothing but to convince the students and, once they paid the fees, they’d close down the firm, escape to a different place and start another firm,” said M B Boralingaiah, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast Division).</p>.<p>Using this modus, the accused have duped as many as 200 students and made away with an amount not less than Rs 25 crore, he added.</p>.<p>Based on a complaint filed by the victims at the Madiwala and Adugodi police stations, the police raided the firm and arrested the accused. But, Rao and Nikhila along with one of their associates Zameer managed to escape.</p>.<p>The police further learnt that the accused have fled the country and efforts are on to trace them.</p>.<p>Several cases are pending against the accused, including in Chennai, Hyderabad, Tirupati and Coimbatore.</p>