Taken in by promise of expensive gifts, Ludhiana woman duped of ₹1.4 lakh

Victim said she had met the accused, who called himself Chetan Bhagat, and said he stayed in New York, on a matrimonial site

A woman was duped of ₹1.4 lakh by a prospective suitor who asked her pay the amount to the customs department in order to clear an expensive gift sent to her from New York.

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Two of the accused have been identified as Ranbir Singh and Rustom of Maa Shimla Homes, Kharar.

The victim, Jaspreet Kaur, 34, of Rajguru Nagar, said she had met the accused, who called himself Chetan Bhagat and said he stayed in New York, on a matrimonial site.

Bhagat said he wanted to come visit her and was also bringing an expensive present for her. Later, he told the complainant that all flights had been cancelled due to the pandemic but he had sent a parcel containing a valuable gift and she should get it cleared from the customs department.

A few days later, Kaur received a phone call from a woman claiming to be a customs officer who asked her to deposit ₹1.4 lakh in an account as custom fee to clear the parcel. When Kaur deferred to Bhagat, he asked her to pay the fee and promised to return the sum after her returned to India.

Additional deputy commissioner of police (ADCP, investigation) Rupinder Kaur Bhatti said the accounts to which the money had been transferred to belonged to Rambir and Rustom and a search was on to nab them. She said it was possible that the crime had been committed by an organised gang that has duped several other people.

A case was registered under Section 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

Commissioner of police Rakesh Agrawal appealed people to not share their bank details, PIN Code and other details with anybody. He also appealed people to send complaints pertaining to cyber crimes to cp.ldh.police@punjab.gov.in.