Thane (Maharashtra)

A man has been arrested from Uttar Pradesh for allegedly cheating more than 25 women, including physically challenged individuals and divorcees, across multiple states of crores of rupees by marrying them through matrimonial ads, a Maharashtra police official said on Friday.

The accused, Anujkumar Chandraprakash Trivedi, was tracked to Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh, where he was living under a false identity, and arrested him on May 24, Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar's Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Doiphode told PTI.

He operated under several aliases, including Ajay Agarwal, Ajay Santosh Singh, and Jaiprakash Rameshchand Gupta.

A 75-year-old woman lodged a complaint with the Nayanagar police in Maharashtra’s Thane district on March 4, 2022, stating that the accused—posing as Ajay Agarwal—had responded to a newspaper matrimonial advertisement for her 45-year-old daughter and married her on March 1, 2019.

The accused later allegedly coerced the complainant into selling her flat in Mira Road, promising to purchase a new flat and construct a two-storey house in Taknau, and took Rs 82 lakh in cash from her in phases.

On February 22, 2022, the accused, under the pretext of attending a relative’s wedding, took the victim to Delhi, where he allegedly decamped with 33 tolas of jewellery at the railway station. He then forced the woman onto a Mumbai-bound train, switched off his phone, and fled.

"The accused embezzled Rs 97 lakh from the complainant and her daughter, after which a case was registered on charges of cheating and criminal breach of trust,” Doiphode said.

During the investigation, the police found that Trivedi had cheated more than 25 women using a similar modus operandi. He targeted mentally challenged, disabled, divorced and helpless women through matrimonial platforms by showing them sympathy, the official said.

"The accused used the money obtained through fraud to purchase a car valued at Rs 20 lakh, which has now been seized by the police," he said.

Investigations also showed that Trivedi was wanted in another case in Amravati, where he had used the alias Ajay Santosh Singh to cheat a woman of Rs 25 lakh.

The accused's son was found to be aiding him in the fraudulent activities and has been named as a co-accused in the case, the official said.

A fake Aadhaar card in the name of 'Jaiprakash Gupta', three mobile phones, and an ATM card were seized from his possession, he said, adding that the accused in currently in judicial custody.

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The police have appealed to women or families cheated by the man to come forward and contact them.