Kerala Police have busted one of the India’s largest fake degree rackets on December 10, 2025. This is a nationwide network involved in manufacturing and distributing forged university certificates, including fake foreign qualifications. Police stated through press on December 10, 2025, that the racket spread multiple states and suspected to have supplied counterfeit academic credentials to more than one million people across the country.
Investigators identified the mastermind as Dhaneesh, alias “Dany,” who had previously arrested in 2013 for similar crimes. After serving his sentence, he allegedly revived and expanded the illegal operation, running it from a rented house in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu. Police said he strengthened the network by recruiting skilled printing-press workers from Sivakasi and deploying agents in several states for client handling and certificate distribution.
11 Suspect arrested with Fake Degree Racket Busted in Kerala
During coordinated raids across Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, police arrested 11 suspects involved in different levels of the operation—printing, transporting, and distributing the forged documents.
Those arrested include Irshad, Rahul, Nissar, Jaseem, Shafeeq, Ratheesh, and Afsal from Kerala, as well as Jainulabideen, Aravind, and Venkatesh from Tamil Nadu. Each member allegedly handled specific tasks within the organised network.
Police seized hundreds of printers, computers, forged seals, stamps and other equipment used to replicate authentic university documents. Nearly 100,000 fake degree certificates linked to around 22 universities were recovered. According to investigators, the counterfeits were created with precise detailing—logos, holograms and forged signatures—to closely resemble genuine certificates.
The investigation revealed that the fake documents were produced in Tamil Nadu and then sent to a central distribution hub in Bengaluru. After this athe fake certificate circulated by agents across states including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, Delhi and West Bengal. This multi-layered distribution system enabled widespread misuse of the certificates for employment and other purposes.
Police said proceeds from the scam were used by the main accused to fund a lavish lifestyle, including investments in real estate and other ventures. The ringleader was arrested in Kozhikode while allegedly attempting to flee the country with his family.
Authorities have begun forwarding the seized certificates to respective universities for authentication. Investigators are also investigation whether any insiders of college or university assisted the gang by providing confidential templates or security details. A parallel investigation is underway to identify the people who used these forged certificates to secure jobs. These incident raised serious concerns about recruitment integrity across government and private sectors.
