Mumbai: In a matrimonial-cum-customs gift fraud, a 49-year-old tuition teacher from Jogeshwari was duped to the tune of Rs 3.4 lakh by a prospective spouse on the pretext of sending her a gift from abroad.
The accused, identified as Salman, lured the Oshiwara-based woman to pay various customs charges, promising to pay her back, but only in vain. Police said Salman has been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act.
The Jogeshwari-based tuition teacher, who has a profile on a popular matrimonial website to look for a spouse within their community, was contacted by the accused, who identified himself as Salman from New York. The two began chatting to check their compatibility and Salman, who claimed to be a practicing doctor in the United States, showed interest in marrying the teacher.
During their chats, Salman told the complainant that he was sending her a gift, to which the teacher asked him not to do so. On August 6, she received a call from Salman who said that the gift he sent has been caught by the Customs officials at the Delhi Airport and the duty charges need to be paid. "Salman asked me to make a series of payments worth Rs 3,40,500 to a bank account and I did so in the next few days. However, the demands kept on increasing and when I started raising questions, he stopped answering my calls has been unreachable since," said the woman in her complaint.
She immediately approached Oshiwara Police and lodged a complaint against Salman, following which he was booked under relevant sections for cheating. "After contacting the bank, we managed to freeze Rs 1 lakh from the account and efforts to recover the remaining Rs 2.4 lakh is underway. We are investigating the matter further," said Dayanand Bangar, senior inspector of Oshiwara police station.
