Bengaluru: A 45-year-old man from Chikkabalapura, was duped by his “Italian girlfriend” to the tune of Rs 33 lakhs. He has approached the police as an alleged matrimonial fraud victim.
R K Muniraja, a divorced electrician, had registered himself on a matrimonial site in the hopes of finding love again. He met Daksha Patel J on the site on August 31 and after several chats, she expressed her interest in marrying him.
According to Muniraja, the woman claimed that she was from a rich family and that she would convince her parents to allow her to marry him. She also told him that she would convince her parents to transfer Rs 1.5 crores to his account before moving to India.
On September 8, the woman said that she was travelling to India with the Rs 1.5 crores in foreign currency. She later called him to inform him that she had been detained at the Delhi airport by the customs officials for carrying foreign currency with her. She then called Muniraja and asked him to send her money in Indian rupees.
Desperate to help his lady love, Muniraja raised loans and drew Rs 5 lakhs from his savings. He then transferred a total of Rs 33 lakhs to the list of bank accounts she had sent him. Once he had sent the money, he lost contact with the woman and when he approached a bank branch manager regarding his predicament, he was informed that he was the victim of fraud.
Muniraja is now in debt, stuck having to pay monthly interest of Rs 1 lakh on the loans he had raised for the woman. He then appealed to everyone to be cautious when they meet strangers online.
