Kochi, February 12 Police arrested a group on Thursday, allegedly for defrauding a man by claiming he had won lucrative prizes and special offers related to a recent car purchase, officials said.
Those arrested include Mohammed Saad Saifi (23), Gagan Khurana (22), Rahul Kumar (28), and Ravi Prajapati (25), all from Delhi; Shitij Sengar (25), Ayush Manthyan (26), and Harsh Vardhan Singh Chauhan (26), all from Uttar Pradesh; and Asif Jamal (34), from West Bengal.
According to police, the group contacted the 61-year-old complainant from Kadungalloor by phone and offered a special, discounted family tour package to Europe, along with gift vouchers, claiming it was a promotional benefit linked to his recent car purchase.
The accused allegedly demanded ₹6.5 lakh for the "special offer" and persuaded the victim to pay ₹3 lakh in advance, promising additional discounts for early payment.
Acting on these assurances, the complainant transferred ₹1.5 lakh through UPI and bank transactions.
A meeting related to the offer reportedly took place on Tuesday at a luxury hotel in Nedumbassery, attended by around 10 people, including the arrested accused, police said.
When the promised benefits were not provided, the victim approached the police. A case was registered earlier in the morning, and the accused were tracked down from Edathala.
Nedumbassery police said the group is suspected to be part of an interstate fraud network, and an investigation is underway to determine how they obtained details of the complainant's car purchase.
The arrested individuals were produced before a court and remanded to custody, officials added.