TWENTY-SEVEN-year-old Dhanraj Raghubir was on Wednesday sentenced to two years imprisonment after he was found guilty by City Magistrate Leron Daly on one count of fraudulent conversion.Raghubir, 27, of Gordon Street, Kitty, was initially slapped with 17 indictable charges, which all alleged that he fraudulently converted to his own use and benefit, money given him to either pay the Bank of Baroda for U.S. visa applications, or purchase bank drafts for Canadian visas.

When the matter was previously called up in court, Raghubir gave every assurance that he would compensate the virtual complainants, but failed to make good on that promise on Wednesday.

In the circumstances, one of the 17 matters was concluded the said day, and he was sentenced for fraudulently converting to his own use and benefit, the sum of $64,000, the property of Natasha Cheddi.

According to the facts, Cheddi had sent Raghubir a message via his Facebook page saying she was interested in his visa application services as advertised.

She then made contact with him later, via telephone, whereby he was asked to schedule an appointment for a visa waiver for her husband. But on the date of the appointment when the two met, Cheddi told the court, Raghubir assured her that he would be able to provide the application services as requested.

After checking for several weeks at Raghubir’s office, Cheddi was unable to confirm the date for her interview at the embassy. A representative of the Bank of Baroda also informed the court that Raghubir did not make any such payments on Cheddi’s behalf for a visa application.

As such, Magistrate Daly found the defendant guilty for failing to pay the money on Cheddi’s behalf to the bank, failing to provide her the service as promised, and failing to compensate her for misappropriating her money.

The other 16 matters, which are of a similar nature, will be heard on March 6, 2017.