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Brijesh Mishra, an Indian immigration agent involved in a scam issuing fake college admissions to Indian students to get Canada visas, has been sentenced to three years in jail after pleading guilty in a Vancouver court. Mishra, 37, was linked to fake acceptance letters for Canadian colleges given to students between 2016 and 2020. Arrested in Surrey, BC, in June 2023, he apologized and showed remorse for his actions. Having already spent time in custody since his arrest, he will serve an additional 19 months.
Mishra was at the heart of a scam that cheated Indian students by providing fake college admissions to secure Canadian visas. After pleading guilty to immigration offenses, including lying and giving false information, he was sentenced to three years in prison.
Wearing a red jumpsuit, Mishra stood in court and apologized. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I can’t change the past, but I will make sure it doesn’t happen again in the future.”
Mishra was arrested in June 2023 in Surrey, British Columbia. He had entered Canada on a tourist visa that had expired by the time of his arrest. Both the prosecution and defense lawyers agreed on a three-year prison sentence, which the judge accepted. Mishra’s time already spent in custody will count towards his sentence, leaving him with 19 months left to serve.
Mishra’s defense lawyer, Gagan Nahal, said his client showed true remorse. “The pleas today show his remorse because he could have chosen to go to trial.”
The Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) found that Mishra had issued dozens of fake acceptance letters to Indian students between 2016 and 2020. Mishra advised students to apply to multiple schools and charged fees for various services, including application fees, tuition, immigration fees, and consulting fees. Families usually paid in cash without receipts.
When students arrived in Canada, they found out they were not admitted to the schools they thought they had been accepted into. Mishra’s responses ranged from helping them enroll in other schools to completely avoiding the victims and their families.
After serving his sentence in Canada, Mishra is expected to be deported to India, where he faces more charges, including human smuggling, which carries a maximum penalty of death.
The CBSA continues to locate all victims of Mishra and other fraudsters. Their focus is on helping genuine students complete their studies in Canada. “We will continue to help genuine students as part of the task force so they can finish their studies in Canada,” the CBSA said in a statement.
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