The Delhi Police are investigating a case of missing passports from the Canadian High Commission. The complaint filed by the High Commission points to an immigration racket in which passports with valid visas are stolen and used by someone else to reach Canada.

The FIR lists the details of 24 people whose passports with valid visas were stolen and the names of people who used those travel documents to migrate to Canada.

The High Commission has complained that the passports went missing or were stolen over a period of three years between April 2003 and September 2006. The High Commission filed the FIR only on May 29, 2007. The FIR shows that some of the passports were used even in February 2007 for travelling to Canada.

Police sources say that they suspect the involvement of an insider who is probably in league with an immigration racket.

“It seems that an insider in the High Commission was stealing some of the passports,” said a senior police officer. When contacted, Shane Tuckey, liaison officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at the Canadian High Commission, refused to comment.

The police say they are trying to trace the modus operandi of the gang involved. “We have registered a case of theft and investigations are on. However, we don’t want to reveal much as it would only help to alert the culprits,” said a senior police officer.