Maha man duped by duo posing as UK citizen, Customs official

An investment consultant was duped of Rs 2.45 lakh by two people posing as a UK citizen and Customs official respectively, Nagpur police said on Friday.

Sanjay Gunghe (56) used to advertise his investment firm on social media platforms and one of the two accused befriended him on the internet by claiming he was a citizen of the United Kingdom, an official said.

"This man, who gave his name as Howard Artiyana, contacted Gunghe and assured investment of a huge sum in his firm. He told Gunghe he would come to India on October 9," the official said.

However, on October 9, Gunghe got a call from a woman, who claimed she was a Customs official posted at Delhi airport, he said.

"This fake Customs official told Gunghe that Artiyana had been detained at Delhi Airport with millions of pounds. In order to get Artiyana released, the Customs official asked Gunghe to deposit money several times, all of which added to Rs 2.45 lakh," the official said.

The woman and the "UK citizen" were soon unreachable over phone, after which Gunghe realised he had been duped, the Beltarodi police station official said.

A case of cheating was registered on Thursday and efforts were on to nab the two accused, he added.