NEW DELHI: A 29-year-old African was arrested in Delhi for allegedly duping over 100 women after impersonating as a UK-based Korean jewellery businessman and luring them with false promises of a personal relationship and business collaboration, police said on Monday.
The accused has been identified as Stephane alias K Cee Dominic, a resident of Tilak Nagar.
A case was registered on September 24 on the complaint of a woman alleging that she came into contact with Duck Young through a language-exchange app, which helps users practice languages by chatting with native speakers around the world. The suspect introduced himself as a UK-based Korean jewellery businessman.
After gaining her trust, he claimed that he had arrived at Mumbai Airport but was detained by immigration officers for travelling to India without his medical facility card. Thereafter, she received calls from two Indian mobile numbers where the callers impersonated themselves as immigration officials and demanded money for clearance. She transferred Rs 48,500 through UPI. Later, another demand of Rs 2 lakh was made, but she refused, a senior police officer said.
During the investigation, police arrested Stephane from Tilak Nagar. When his mobile phone was checked, he was found chatting with over 100 women across India using the same modus operandi and luring the victims with false promises of personal relationships and business collaboration, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Prashant Gautam said.
He came to India on a six-month tourist visa in 2019, but stayed here even after the visa expired. He ran out of his savings and later indulged in wrongful activities. He created a fake online identity as Duck Young on the app.
He targeted single women, gained their trust and falsely claimed his detention at Mumbai immigration for carrying a large cheque without clearance documents and for not carrying a medical facility card. Thereafter, his associates impersonated immigration officials over phone calls and demanded money for clearance. Believing the false narrative, victims transferred money through UPI, the DCP added.