Matrimony fraud: Odisha man loses Rs 4L to woman who approached him for marriage

Bhubaneswar, Sept 23: A 38-year-old man in Odisha's capital city has lost Rs 4 lakh in a matrimonial fraud after a woman approached him accepting his marriage proposal. The victim, Jagat Mohanty, of the Nayapalli area in Bhubaneswar had opened a profile on a matrimonial website. After a few days, a 27-year-old woman from the Netaji Nagar area in the city contacted him on the website. Later, they switched to WhatsApp and were in a relationship.  In between, the woman took Rs 2.9 lakh from him on several occasions. He also gifted a gold chain of 11 gm, a ring and earring, and costly dresses after they decided to get married in June. Later, the woman refused to marry him and avoided Jagat following which, the victim asked her to return the money and gold ornaments. The woman called him to NALCO Square on June 24. The woman reached there with her four friends and attacked Jagat threatening him to file a rape case if he approaches the police. They also blackmailed showing some obscene pictures of him. After a few days, the woman further started blackmailing him following which the victim approached the Orissa High Court. Acting on the court order, Chandrasekharpur police lodged a case on September 21 and launched an investigation. Preliminary investigations revealed that the woman and her four friends have opened profiles on the matrimonial website as doctors and they target rich youth. They are operating a matrimonial fraud racket, said police.