A gang allegedly involved in preparing fake documents for United States visas was busted and five persons were arrested in this connection in Hyderabad on Wednesday, police said.

Search was on for 15 other members of the gang, including five Chennai-based agents, Police Commissioner R P Singh said.

The kingpin of the racket, Sheikh Abdul Rasheed (56), a retired bank employee, used to contact aspirants seeking to go the US on visiting visas, with a promise to provide fake income tax papers, financial statements, bank challans, PAN cards and other documents, he said.

During the last two year Rasheed, a resident of Hyderabad, had sent 11 candidates on visiting visas to the US and collected Rs 200,000 each from them, he said.

The police seized a computer, 186 genuine passports, 143 fake rubber stamps and 36 fake documents from the arrested persons, Singh said.

The arrests came following a tip-off by the US consulate in Chennai.