Devotee from Pimpri-Chinchwad Duped of ₹7.22 Lakh in Online Room Booking Scam

A devotee from Pimpri-Chinchwad lost ₹7.22 lakh in a cyber fraud while trying to book an air-conditioned room at Bhakt Niwas near the Shri Gajanan Maharaj Temple in Shegaon.

According to police, the incident occurred between April 27 and April 29. The victim, a resident of Dehu Road, was looking for accommodation near the temple in Buldhana district. He searched online and found the contact number of a man named Satish Sharma, who claimed to handle room bookings.

Trusting the information, the devotee contacted Sharma and followed his instructions to book the room. The fraudster asked the victim to transfer money in multiple transactions, totaling ₹7.22 lakh. However, the victim never received any booking confirmation.

Realizing he had been cheated, the devotee filed a complaint at the Dehu Road police station. An investigation is now underway.

Police have once again warned the public to avoid trusting unverified numbers or websites when making online bookings and to always use official portals or contact numbers.