Goa: 4 held for duping tourists by listing non-existent hotels on booking sites

The Goa police on Monday arrested a Hyderabad-based gang who allegedly duped tourists by collecting advance payments for non-existent hotels they listed on popular travel aggregator sites. Police said the accused have been identified as Hyderabad residents Sayed Ali Mukhtar, Mohammed Firod and Mohammed Azharuddin Saif and Gwalior resident Saurabh Duseja.

The scam came to light following a complaint filed by one Pankaj Dhiman, a resident of Chandigarh, who was duped ₹20,000 while attempting to book a property in Goa on a booking site. The transactions didn’t happen through the website but instead via UPI as the property was listed as ‘unverified’ on the site with a phone number to contact for booking.