Pothencode (Thiruvananthapuram): An incident involving the swindling of money from a young man through a fake web link in the name of a well-known tour package company has come to light. V Vinod from Karamcode, fell victim to this scam, losing Rs 70,000. The Vattappara police have registered a case based on the complaint filed by Vinod.
Vinod became a target of the fraud while planning a pilgrimage trip to Kedarnath, along with 10 others on October 20. He saw a web link on Facebook, purportedly associated with the Pawan Hans tour company. As he explored the details by clicking the link, information including rates for the helicopter trip to Kedarnath, arrived on his WhatsApp number. To establish their legitimacy, a photo-affixed identity card of an individual named Mahesh Anand Baker, claiming to be the company’s information manager, was also sent. The fraudsters demanded Rs 7,000 per person for the helicopter trip from Phata to Kedarnath and back.
Vinod sent Rs 70,000 in three installments through Paytm to the two phone numbers provided in the link. He became suspicious when the perpetrators demanded more money.
Following this, Vinod contacted Pawan Hans, a company based in Gujarat. The company authorities clarified that they conducted tours in collaboration only with IRCTC and had no travel arrangements with any other private agency. They advised Vinod to file a police complaint promptly. The police investigation revealed that the funds were transferred to the accounts of individuals named Mohammad Irfan and Sarafuddin Shaikh.
