NOIDA: A fake travel company operating out of Sector 63 was busted on Saturday and 32 people, including 12 women, were arrested for cheating customers with lucrative holiday packages.
The arrests came after a woman alleged that she was promised a nine-day vacation to Kerala but eventually conned of Rs 84,000.
The accused, employees of Country Holiday Travel India Pvt Ltd, a city-based travel company, would allegedly obtain customer information through the dark web. They would then offer lucrative holiday deals and build trust through in-person visits and persuasive presentations, police said.
“Once the payments for the bookings were made through cash or bank transfers, no services would be provided. Refund requests would also be ignored,” said DCP (central Noida) Shakti Mohan Awasthi.
“The company representatives lured customers through cold calls, offering attractive travel deals. It operated on a fake membership model, promising exclusive benefits that were never fulfilled. Earlier, complaints about the company had surfaced in Bengaluru and Raigad, Maharashtra, where its accounts were frozen,” the DCP added.
The investigation began on Nov 28 after a victim reported the scam. Subsequently, police raided the company’s Sector 63 office on Nov 29, recovering laptops, iPads, routers, and documents.
Those arrested, aged 19 to 37, include senior officials and team leaders accused of orchestrating the operation, police said. The accused have been charged under Sections 316(2) and 318(4) of BNS. An investigation into the matter is underway.
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