Jan 20- Four persons have been arrested by Goa police for duping over 500 tourists for crores through online accommodation booking scam by exploiting loopholes on renowned online hotel booking platforms. The accused are identified as 37-year-old Saurav from Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh and Sayyad Ali Mukhtar, Mohammad Firoz and Mohammad Azharuddin Saif from Hyderabad. Incidentally, one of the accused runs a hotel on lease in Goa while father of another one runs a photo studio in Calangute. SP North Akshat Kaushal informed that the fraudulent operation, active since 2022, deceived tourists by listing non-existent properties for rent online and collecting advance payments using 15 different bank accounts. They allegedly lured gullible tourists with cheap deals. Goa Police unearthed the scam while investigating email complaint from a tourist from Chandigarh identified as one Pankaj Dhiman. As per the complaint, he had booked a property in Goa named ‘Ruby Villa’ through booking .com by paying Rs 20,000. However when he arrived in Goa he could not find the property and realised that he was cheated. Police traced the 4 accused to an office in Hyderabad and nabbed 3 of them in Hyderabad and fourth one in Jaipur.
