Script gone wrong: When Bollywood celebs became victims of fraud

In the wake of Bollywood actress and model Nargis Fakhri being conned of Rs 6 lakh in a case of credit card fraud, we take a look at some other showbiz celebrities who were also duped.

Akshaye Khanna: In October 2013, Khanna, who has acted in several blockbuster films such as ‘Dil Chahta Hai', ‘Hungama' and ‘Border', was in the news for all the wrong reasons when the Malabar Hill police and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) initiated a case against Satyabrata and Shona Chakrabarti for duping the actor of Rs 50 lakh.

The duo apparently met the film star in a party through a common friend in September 2010, where they introduced him to their firm named Intex Immijet Private Limited which allegedly dealt in the commodity market. According to investigating officers at Malabar Hill police station, the couple asked the actor to invest his money with them, promising to double his investment in a year. (Full Story)

Swara Bhaskar: In September 2015, Swara Bhaskar, who was shooting in Karjat for an upcoming Salman Khan-starrer, fell victim to ATM fraud. On August 27, she had attempted to withdraw cash at an ATM in the premises of a Navi Mumbai shopping mall, but in vain. A few minutes later, however, she received a message that Rs 20,000 had been debited from her account.

A source close to the actress had said, "After wrapping up the day's schedule, she was heading to a hotel and on the way, stopped by the mall in Kharghar. The ATM was quite slow and two people standing close by informed her that it was not working properly. So, she left without making any transaction. When she stepped out and reached her car, she got a message saying Rs 20,000 had been withdrawn from her account. She was shocked as she hadn't even entered her ATM pin." (Full Story)

Sunita Gowariker: Just a few days back, the wife of filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker Sunita, herself a producer, lodged a complaint through her manager with Khar police station about an online fraud that has squeezed out more than Rs 1 lakh using her credit card account in the first week of this month. Sunita, on August 5 received a message that Rs 1,34, 333.08 was spent for online shopping using the card.

Immediately, she contacted the manager of Ashutosh Gowariker Productions Pvt. Ltd (Khar West), and asked him about the transaction. The manager, Vishwanath Nayar (35) replied her in negative after confirming from the concerned department, after which Sunita asked him to file a police complaint the next day. Police is suspecting that it's a hacker's handiwork or Sunita had shared her PayTM account details with somebody, who misused it. (Full Story)

Tiku Talsania: In November 2013, a self-described car dealer who conned Bollywood actor Tiku Talsania of Rs 6 lakh and his sports bike landed in the police net. Employing the modus operandi he used on Talsania, the accused also swindled a south Mumbai resident of Rs 13 lakh.

He had promised both the victims a brand new car at a discounted rate, but went into hiding after taking their money. Police said the conman, identified as Kandivli resident Parag Pravinchand Shah (39), was first apprehended by the Dindoshi police in the Talsania case, but was taken into custody by the Gamdevi police, after they learnt of his arrest. Talsania's sports bike, valued at Rs 3 lakh, was recovered by cops. (Full Story)

Karan Kamal Sharda: In April 2015, a newbie actor, Karan Kamal Sharda, filed a complaint at the Oshiwara police station against two persons for cheating him of Rs 3.5 lakh. The accused were identified as Archana Sharma (27) and Gaurav Joshi (28).

According to Sharda, he gave money to the duo after they told him that they would help him get a movie role in a film to be made by Mohit Raina. Accordingly, he paid a portion of the amount on January 24, 2015, at 11 pm. The remaining amount was paid later. After the amount was paid, both Joshi and Sharma started avoiding Sharda's calls and kept messaging him about future dates, when they would get in touch.

They also sent a few emails to Sharda from well-known producer Boney Kapoor's email ID, which they had apparently hacked. Sharma then repeatedly assured Sharda that she was keeping a tab on the issue and all would be well. After the calls stopped coming, Sharda approached Boney Kapoor's office when he was told that the producer was making No Entry 2 and not No Entry Mein Entry, which was a future project. Sharda then approached the police and an FIR was registered against Sharma and Joshi. (Full Story)