Mumbai: Fraudulent Website Scam Exposes Hotel Owner To Massive Losses In Mumbai

Andheri, 28th July 2023: A case of fraudulent activity has come to light in Mumbai, where a cheater allegedly created a fake logo and website for Sai Palace Hotel, located in the MIDC area of Andheri. The hotel owner, Ganesh Bhandari, was left shocked when he discovered that several customers fell victim to the scam, resulting in significant financial losses.

According to reports, Ganesh Bhandari had initiated the online registration of his hotel on Google to expand his business and facilitate online room bookings for customers. However, he soon came to know about the fraud when a customer named Vidan Shah visited the hotel, claiming to have paid for two rooms via UPI on the hotel’s website. Upon investigation, Bhandari realised that no payment had been received, prompting him to scrutinise the transaction details provided by Shah.

Surprisingly, Bhandari found that the website used for the payment transaction had his hotel’s photo, logo, and address. It became evident that a fraudster had created a dummy website, duping customers into making payments on it.

After that incident, again, four to five people came to Bhandari in the month of July, alleging the same complaint. Having realised that around sixty thousand rupees had been syphoned off from customers’ accounts, Bhandari promptly filed a complaint at the MIDC police station in Andheri. Police have registered a complaint and are further investigating the case using the defrauded customer’s transaction details.