Kamal Ghorui
An Indian immigrant’s claim that she was tricked into using a fake nursing certificate has been rejected by an Australian court, which found her guilty and described her defence as a string of “outright lies”.33-year-old Harpreet Kaur was convicted in Adelaide of falsely presenting herself as a registered health practitioner, reports Australia Today. The case involves her using a fake certificate to secure nursing work in Australia.According to the Christies Beach Magistrates Court, Kaur trained as a nurse in India and had failed her Australian certification exams three times before obtaining the document. She first admitted to the charges in 2024, but later took back her plea, saying she did not know the certificate was fake and had bought it from an online “guru” who charged her $10,000 for training and documents.In her defence, Kaur told the court she believed the certificate was genuine and denied trying to mislead her employer or authorities. However, Magistrate Luke Davis rejected her account, finding that she had knowingly used a falsified document and had lied under oath during the trial.He said there was a lot of evidence against her and dismissed her claims of being scammed. “While it’s unfortunate and notorious that people of all ages fall victim to internet scams, there’s an avalanche of evidence pointing to guilt,” he said.The magistrate was critical of her testimony: “I don’t accept Kaur as an honest witness … she was evasive and unconvincing, giving ridiculous answers I found inconceivable [and] absolutely ludicrous.”He also said the certificate itself was clearly fake: “I find that the document itself was obviously false, bogus, doctored and was easily seen to be so … one could not help but notice.”Magistrate Davis further ruled that Kaur had been “in cahoots” with an “elusive, shadowy figure” and was fully aware that her actions were unlawful.Kaur now faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a fine of up to $60,000. She is due to return to court next month for sentencing.
