Mumbai: Woman duped of Rs 8.2 lakh by man she met on dating app

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A 58-year-old woman from south Mumbai was allegedly duped of Rs 8.25 lakh by a man she met on a dating app, police said on Tuesday.

Based on a complaint, newswire PTI reported, police Monday registered a case under sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code against one Sudhir Alok Dhar, an official said.

The woman, a retiree living in Colaba, got acquainted with Dhar on Tinder in August last year, and they exchanged phone numbers and started chatting with each other, he said.

The accused allegedly met the woman at a hotel and proposed to her for a live-in relationship and marriage if things went well, the official said, quoting the FIR.

Dhar claimed that he was staying in a hotel as his house was being renovated and said he owned a fisheries business, he said. The accused claimed that he exported fish to Singapore and Vietnam and earned good profit and asked the woman if she wished to invest in his business, the official said.

The woman transferred Rs 25,000 to the accused's bank account, and he again demanded Rs 20,000 from her, he said.

Dhar demanded money from the victim on different occasions, and she gave him the money by mortgaging her jewellery and borrowing from her brother, the official said.

The accused promised to return her investment with profit within 60 days, and when he failed to do so, the woman found out more about him and realised that she had been cheated.

Dhar gave the complainant a cheque of Rs 10 lakh on January 3, but when it bounced, she decided to lodge a complaint, the official said.

Meanwhile, the Navi Mumbai police have registered a case against two persons for allegedly cheating a Solapur-based businessman of Rs 1 crore, an official said on Tuesday.

Based on a complaint lodged by the businessman, a case under sections 420 (cheating) and 406 (criminal breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code was registered at Vashi police station, senior inspector Madhukar Bate said.

The accused, Manish Shinde, a resident of Baramati, and Gurupreet Singh, allegedly lured the victim to invest in some companies dealing in pipes in Mumbai, and earn good returns within a couple of days, he said.

The businessman allegedly collected money from local farmers, put in his own money and handed over Rs 1 crore to the accused between February 16 and 26. However, the accused started giving him evasive replies when he sought returns on his investment, the official said. (With inputs from agencies)