On 26th October, a 34-year-old man from Anand, Gujarat, approached the Mahemdavad town police station to file a complaint against scam artists for duping him of Rs 3 lakh under the guise of providing escort services. The man, an employee at a multinational firm, sought escort services to combat his loneliness on 25th September 2024, as he was living alone following a separation in 2015. He was lured into an online escort scam by an individual claiming to provide such services, which ultimately led to him losing a staggering Rs 3 lakh.
The man reportedly fell for the scam when he was looking for companionship in Gujarat via online escort services and found a contact number for a person identifying himself as Manik Gaus. He contacted Gaus on WhatsApp and received images of multiple women. Gaus convinced the victim to make an initial payment of Rs 6,000 as registration fees.
Enticed by the images shared by Gaus, the man paid the fees and then selected two women for the services. Gaus directed him to a hotel in Ahmedabad and asked for Rs 40,000 in exchange for the services. Over the next week, he was misled into paying various fictitious fees, including hotel entry, security, and police protection.
In this way, the man paid around Rs 3 lakh to Gaus, hoping to receive escort services. When he realised it was a scam, he approached the police and filed a complaint. Based on his complaint, an FIR has been registered under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nayay Sanhita and Sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000. OpIndia accessed a copy of the FIR, which provided comprehensive details of how the scam was executed.
Case background and the victim’s ordeal
According to the complaint filed by the victim, he is a resident of Vantawadi village in Kheda. In his complaint, he stated that he came across an escort service through a Google search on 25th September 2024. When he contacted the number, the person on the other end identified himself as “Money Gaus Escort Service Provider.” He sent the victim photographs of various women and demanded Rs 6,000 as registration fees upfront.
The victim complied with the demand and transferred the fees via UPI. He was then directed to the Regenta Central Interim Hotel. Gaus told him to deposit Rs 19,900 as service charges per person. The victim paid a total of Rs 39,980 as he chose to engage two women. Initially, he expected the amount was refundable.
After arriving at the hotel, Gaus told him to pay additional charges, including Rs 29,520 as “girl security” and Rs 71,040 as “police security.” The money was paid into an account under the name of Zamina Khatoon in NSDL Bank. Gaus promised that the security deposit was refundable and would be returned upon completion of the service.
However, even after paying over Rs 2 lakh via Google Pay and other means, the promised services were not provided. When the victim asked for a refund, he was asked to pay another Rs 53,520, with a promise to fulfil the service request; however, neither was the service provided nor did he receive any refund.
After realising he had been duped, the victim approached the Mahemdavad police station and filed a complaint, which led to a formal investigation into the matter. The FIR noted that he contacted ‘Gaus’ primarily through mobile numbers and that the payments were made via UPI IDs and bank accounts. The police are now tracing the digital footprint left by the payments to identify and apprehend the scammers involved.
