Mumbai: A tour organiser was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly duping 11 freelance tour managers by promising them overseas assignments in Europe and Dubai and collecting lakhs of rupees under the guise of travel and visa arrangements.
According to Dindoshi police, the accused, Viral Ashwin Thakkar, took Rs 7.28 lakh from each tour manager under the pretext of booking flight tickets and later demanded an additional Rs 8 lakh per person for what he claimed were new visa insurance regulations, as reported by Hindustan Times.
One of the victims, Keval Atul Gala, a Malad resident, works as a freelance tour manager along with nine others at a private tour agency. In April, Gala learned from his colleague Viraj Bhatada that he had been offered a tour management job in Europe by Thakkar. Subsequently, Gala and his colleagues also approached Thakkar, who assured them of similar job opportunities.
On May 7, Thakkar called the group to a visa office in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), but he never showed up. When the promised arrangements didn’t materialise and suspicions grew, Gala and the other victims cancelled the tour and began demanding a refund. However, Thakkar failed to return the money, according to the report.
Following Gala’s complaint, Thakkar was booked by Dindoshi police for fraud and embezzlement in May. He absconded from the city and remained untraceable for about one and a half months.
A police official stated, “After a search operation, Thakkar, who had been absconding for one and a half months, was arrested.” During interrogation, he reportedly confessed to cheating the tour managers. Thakkar was presented before the Borivali court and has been remanded to police custody for four days.
