Hyderabad: The Madhapur police have apprehended seven accused persons: Aakash Kumar, Suraj Kumar, Akshat Narula, Tarun, Shiv Raj Nayak, Rohith Kumar and Cherkupally Sai Kumar, who were cheating people after contacting them through a dating app in a new case of scam.
DCP Madhapur, Dr G Vineet, said that the gang first contacted the victims by using photos of women on online dating apps. The women first met the targets at eateries and in subsequent meetings took the gullible victims to Mosh Pub, Madhapur, and forced the customers to drink expensive liquor in their pub. Ultimately, they scammed the victims, lured via dating apps, by charging huge amounts of money in the form of bills.
The six accused run a Devil’s Night Club in Delhi. “Their modus operandi is recruiting girls from Hyderabad and registering them on dating apps for the scam. They meet at a cafe first and are then led into this particular pub, MOSH PUB. They order food and beverages priced at high rates, which the victims are forced to pay. The bill amount is then shared amongst the pub owner, organisers and girls,” said G Vineet.
One person from this gang initially chatted with the victims. This modus operandi for the dating app scam was repeated in cities like Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad. The gang was about to start its operations in Nagpur.
Modus operandi of new dating scam in Hyderabad
“They select pubs which are in loss condition and Google ratings are very poor. In this particular pub, the accused operated for 45 days, especially on six weekends. They duped 50-60 customers to the tune of 30 lakh and shared the money among themselves. For this new dating app scam they set up accounts on Tinder, Bumble and Hinge from Hyderabad,” added G Vineet.
The police advised the public to inform the police regarding information related to gangs who scam innocent customers through dating apps, in pubs and bars across Hyderabad. Complaints can be filed via Dial 100, the Anti-Drug Abuse helpline number (9490617182) or with the Cyberabad police on WhatsApp at 9490617444.
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