Panaji: A 25-year-old Madhya Pradesh resident, Lalit Khare, was arrested by Goa police on Saturday in connection with a pan-India fake hotel websites racket case.
The cyber crime police station registered the case based on the complaint of the general manager of a beach resort in Salcete. The complaint stated that an unidentified person created a fake website for the complainant’s resort, using its brand name, and lured innocent customers, thereby inducing them to transfer money into fraudulent bank accounts associated with the fake website. The perpetrator impersonated the complainant’s resort using computer sources.
Cyber crime SP Rahul Gupta said that following the identification of the websites, a person named Khare was identified as the creator of the fake website and the one who made payments to the host for the creation of the website.
Accordingly, a crime branch team consisting of PI Prashal Dessai apprehended Khare from Morena, MP. “During interrogation with the accused, seven more fake hotel websites were found to have been created by him; four from Goa, two from Odisha, and one from Meghalaya,” said Gupta.
The SP stated that during further investigation, one Firoz Ahmad, a resident of Guna, MP, was identified as having made payments to Khare for the creation of fake hotel websites. “He (Ahmad) was served notice under BNSS, and the interrogation of Ahmad led further investigation to Mewat, Rajasthan. Further investigation of the case is in progress,” he said.
Gupta explained the modus operandi of the accused: a fake website is created using the name and photos of the hotels, and this website is linked to the Google listing. Whenever someone searches on Google for the particular hotel for booking purposes, they are directed to the fake website.
“A WhatsApp number is listed on the fake website, where the fraudster chats with the victim, impersonating hotel staff, and further persuades the victim to transfer money into a bank account provided by him, thereby cheating the victim in the name of hotel booking,” said Gupta.
The public is advised to be cautious while booking hotels online and to check if multiple websites exist of a particular hotel. Before transferring money, it is always advised to cross check with the person asking to transfer the money and a/c holder’s name and to immediately approach local police station or cyber crime PS, Ribandar, said Gupta.
