Bhubaneswar: Cyber police at Chhatrapur in Ganjam district arrested a 39-year-old man for allegedly cheating at least four persons of around Rs 1.20 crore through an online matrimonial platform.
The accused has been identified as Jinu Sahani alias Rakesh Rajput, a resident of Pionepada in Phulbani town, Kandhamal district. He was arrested from Goa and produced in court on Monday after being brought on transit remand.
Police said a case was registered on July 10 after a 31-year-old widow from Bhanjanagar lodged a complaint alleging she was cheated of around Rs 60 lakh.
According to police, the woman had created a matrimonial profile for remarriage and came in contact with the accused about a year ago. He allegedly fabricated stories about his father’s illness and death and later claimed to be suffering from psoriasis to gain her sympathy and obtain money.
He also induced her to allow him to operate her bank account on the false pretext that his own account had been frozen. Police said the complainant mortgaged her gold ornaments, borrowed money from family members and others and transferred around Rs 60 lakh to him through bank transactions.
Further investigation revealed that the accused had similarly cheated at least three other persons, taking the total fraud amount to around Rs 1.20 crore.
