Out to find love, the Delhi man found himself in a soup instead. When the man got a date invitation over WhatsApp, little did he know he was driving towards a scam including a hefty bill and kidnapping.
On October 21, the Delhi man got a WhatsApp message, an invite for a date, in Ghaziabad. What seemed like the start of a possible romantic relationship was a carefully laid trap. The man was asked to meet at Kaushambi metro station. From there, the girl took him to Tiger Cafe, located on the first floor of Kaushambi Hotel.
Looking at the cafe, the man got suspicious. It neither had an online presence nor a signboard outside. He immediately shared his live location with a friend and dropped a message.
His doubts got real when he was about to leave and was handed over a bill worth Rs. 16,400 for a glass of cold drink, ordered by the girl.
Upon protesting, the man was forcibly stopped and demanded Rs. 50,000.
Since his friend was aware of the situation, he dialed the police, prompting an action.
READ | 'Match', Date Night And A Huge Bill: Modus Operandi In Dating App Scams
This helped Police bust the dating scam gang involving five girls and three boys. Reportedly, four girls are from Delhi and have profiles on all dating apps. They call men to Tiger Cafe where they are overcharged for food and drinks. Men are held hostage until they pay the desired money. This is a way to extort money.
The man was set free and an FIR was registered based on his complaint. The eight accused were arrested.
“Further action is being taken,” Swatantra Singh, ACP Indirapuram said.
(With inputs from Pintu Tomar)
