Mira-Bhayandar: Travel Agent Held For Duping People On Pretext Of Booking Tour Tickets

Mumbai: The MHB police have arrested 28-year-old Hardik Mehta from Bhayandar for allegedly deceiving people on the pretext of booking trips to different states in India, as well as abroad.

Hardik Mehta operated a travel company called 'Go Firangi Travels.' In December 2022, he cheated a 34-year-old woman of Rs 1.36 lakhs by falsely booking a tour for Gujarat, failing to make any hotel arrangements, and not refunding her money. Consequently, she filed a case against Hardik Mehta under sections 406 (breach of trust) and 420 (cheating and dishonesty) of the Indian Penal Code in 2023.

For the past nine months, Hardik frequently changed his address to evade the police. He closed his office, fled, and kept his mobile switched off. On October 24, the MHB police received information that Hardik would be in Bhayandar West. Acting on this tip, the police set a trap and arrested him. The investigation revealed that he had been involved in similar crimes in Dadar and Borivali.

The operation to arrest Mehta was executed by Police Inspector Sachin Shinde and Assistant Police Inspector Dr. Deepak Hande under the guidance of the Senior Police Inspector of the MHB police station, Sudheer Kudalkar.