The victim at the centre of a scam which involved breaching immigration law says her life was ‘hell’ living in an unheated flat and sleeping on the floor.

On Wednesday, Sagar Joon, 25, was jailed for three years five months for his part in a scheme to create a fraudulent visa and create a fake job offer to scam the victim of £25,000.

Joon, of Berwick Road, Hayes, Middlesex, previously pleaded guilty in the Court of General Gaol Delivery to breaching immigration law by conspiring to facilitate unlawful entry into the Isle of Man.

The woman, from India, wanted to move to the UK with her family to start a new life. But she described her situation when she first moved to the island as ‘hell’.

During Joon’s sentencing, a victim impact statement was read out by prosecutor James Robinson.

In the statement the victim said: ‘When I began the visa process with Joon and others I thought I would be coming to the UK for a better life for me and my family.

‘When we arrived on the island we were told to stay in a small one-bedroom apartment. We had no heating for five or six months and we had to sleep on the floor. We depended on the local Indian community for food and support.

‘It was hell and we were abandoned completely in a new country with nothing. It was so depressing for me to watch from the flat window everyone living their lives. It felt like I was in prison myself.’

The woman eventually reported her situation to police and the island’s immigration service and she has now managed to settle here.

She said: ‘It was only through my own efforts I managed to find a job and settle in the Isle of Man. I had no help from Joon or the others and we were left to deal with the situation alone.

‘I was scared to seek help from immigration or the police as I thought we’d be deported. Going back would be worse than staying.

‘During this time I was repeatedly pressured for money by Joon and others to pay for the visa process. We had to sell all our land and animals back in India to pay for it.

‘I instead now they were charging me a large amount and exploiting me. I contemplated suicide at one stage as I had no life.

‘But despite what has happened me and my husband have managed to make a life for ourselves over here. We both have good jobs and live in a nice area and we have a place for our son at a local school when he comes over.’

Initial concerns around fraudulent visas and documents was raised in February 2023 when the manager of a Douglas nursing home found a job offer and Certificate of Entry relating to the home were fraudulent. Further investigations found five other fraudulent documents relating to care homes on the island.

Between March 2022 and June 2023, Joon and others produced fake job offer letters and falsified certificates of entry, charging victims up to £25,000 for visas linked to non-existent jobs.

A basis of plea on Joon’s behalf was accepted in which he said he was a facilitator and at the bottom end of the organised criminal gang. Deemster Sandeep Kainth also sentenced him in relation to just the one victim.

The inquiry revealed the involvement of a sham company, Destiny Manpower Consultancy, based in Douglas, which was used to deceive vulnerable individuals seeking legitimate work opportunities.

The court heard that Joon had been part of a wider conspiracy with others, including Zameer Saibole and Vijay Sandhu, to facilitate unlawful immigration by deception. A total of three fake recruitment companies were linked to Saibole.

Joon told the victim he could obtain a visa for £25,000. But the victim was later informed her certificate of entry was fake and that no job existed. She was then allegedly offered £12,500 to return to India and remain silent.

Joon was arrested at Heathrow Airport on June 16 last year and has spent more than 16 months on remand. He had come to the UK from India as a student in 2020.

In mitigation, advocate Paul Glover said his client pleaded guilty had no previous convictions and had gained enhanced prisoner status while on remand. He also said Joon’s role was limited.

Mr Glover added: ‘Nothing he can do or say can fix the impact this has had on the victim and her family. All he can do is apologise.’

Deemster Kainth said he accepted Joon has a lesser role within the organised crime group and took into account his guilty plea and no previous convictions.

But the deemster said the offence was serious and Joon was part of an organised criminal gang driven by greed.

As well as the prison sentence, Joon received an exclusion order banning him from the island for five years. On his release from prison, Joon will be taken to an immigration detention centre in the UK before being deported.