Mumbai Cyber Fraud: Retired Cop's Kin Loses ₹1.6 Lakh After Booking Bangkok Trip Online

Mumbai: The MHB police have registered an FIR against Akhilesh Singh, the owner of Kenil Travel, for allegedly cheating a customer. A 32-year-old woman was looking for a travel agency for a family tour to Thailand. She searched online and found the contact number of Kenil Travel. She was then cheated out of ₹1.64 lakh under the booking of airlines and accommodation. The case was filed on May 30.

About The Case

According to the FIR, the complainant, Ambadas Pote a retired deputy commissioner of police, 69, resides in Borivali West. His son’s family had planned a tour to Thailand. His daughter-in-law, Chitrangada, who works with a private company, searched online and found the details of Kenil Travel. She called the number provided and inquired about a tour package for four people for seven days.

The person who received the call quoted ₹2 lakh for the package, including airfare and accommodation for four people, and informed her that an advance payment was required.

On April 7, she transferred ₹88,000, and on April 21, she sent another ₹1.12 lakh from her ICICI Bank account to Kenil Travel’s Kotak Mahindra Bank account. The agency later sent a booking confirmation letter to Chitrangada via WhatsApp. The letter stated that their accommodation was booked at the Pullman Hotel in Pattaya.

However, on May 17, when Chitrangada, her husband, and their two children arrived at the Pullman Hotel, the hotel staff informed them that there was no such booking. She then checked the return flight booking online and discovered that it had not been made either.

She called the travel agency owner, Akhilesh Singh, to inquire about the bookings, but he evaded her questions. Left with no choice, she made the necessary bookings herself and completed the tour.

She informed her father-in-law, who filed a complaint with the police. The MHB police registered an FIR against Akhilesh Singh under Sections 318(4) (cheating) and 319(2) (cheating by personation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the Information Technology Act.