Man who cheated Canadian woman of ₹33,000 held in Delhi

Madhur Verma, deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi), said Idrees Shamshad Bhat, 33, is a member of a gang of touts that frequently target foreigners.

A man who pretended to be a government-authorised travel agent has been arrested for allegedly cheating a Canadian tourist in Delhi, police said on Wednesday.

A man who pretended to be a government-authorised travel agent has been arrested for allegedly cheating a Canadian tourist in Delhi, police said on Wednesday. (Representative Image) (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Madhur Verma, deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi), said Idrees Shamshad Bhat, 33, is a member of a gang of touts that frequently target foreigners. His associates have been identified but untraceable, police said.

Bhat is from Srinagar and lives in Jangpura Extension. The DCP said there were quite a few complaints against Bhat and his aides at different police stations but they had managed to evade the police.

“They did not stay in Delhi through the year. They would move to Srinagar in summers, making it difficult for us to track them,” said the officer.

The latest complaint against Bhat was by a Canadian woman on March 20. The gang allegedly cheated her of ₹33,000.

“The woman wanted to visit Rajasthan. Bhat and his associates offered her a customised luxury tour from Delhi to Rajasthan. She was asked to pay the entire amount in advance,” said the DCP.

After getting the money, Bhat and his friends allegedly began avoiding her. There were similar complaints against them in the recent weeks, police said.

“The trick was to offer attractive and customised tour packages to foreigners and collect the money in advance. Later, they would either not deliver the tour package at all or would arrange a low-grade trip,” the DCP said.