Mumbai snake rescuer poses as trustee of two convent schools, dupes 15 parents of Rs3.5 lakh

The case came to light after one Mumbai family realised they had been duped and approached the MIDC police in July

Police arrested a snake rescuer for allegedly cheating 15 parents by posing as a trustee of two convent schools in Andheri (East).

The accused duped 12 women, two men and a senior citizen. (Photo for representation only)

The man, Santosh Rajnikant Suryavanshi, lives at Tripathi Nagar on Mahakali Road in Andheri. He is a graduate who works for an animal welfare group, said police.

The case came to light after one family realised they had been duped and approached the MIDC police in July.

Suryavanshi’s modus operandi was to stand at the gate of schools and befriend parents. He would tell them he had a lot of clout among school management and ask for Rs25,000 as a ‘donation’, promising to help their child secure admission to junior KG or Class 1. Once they paid him, he would cut all contact with them. A local cable operator would occasionally help him select targets.

He duped 12 women, two men and a senior citizen of Rs3.5 lakh collectively. All the victims live at either Durga Nagar or Poonam Nagar in Andheri.

Suryavanshi returned to his home town in Baramati and gambled away the money he had duped the parents of. Acting on a tip-off, police nabbed him in Mumbai on Monday under section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code.