Five months on, police on look for con men who preyed on victims inside Taj Mahal Palace hotel

Phulka then allegedly inquired whether he could pay for the necklace through a Demand Draft (DD). After the store said that he could, Phulka allegedly said that he would return a few days later. “Phulka went back to the store on June 15, a Saturday. He gave the demand draft for Rs 7.5 lakh from an SBI account and left with the necklace,” he said. Supale added that the store could not encash the DD that day as the banks had shut by then. However, when they did so two days later, the bank informed them that the DD was forged.

“Phulka spoke in Hindi with a Gujarati accent and was holding an edition of the Mumbai Samachar. Also, he was carrying a small leather pouch that is typical of Gujarati businessmen. We suspect that he also gave a fake name to the store,” he said. The second case took place in a cafe inside the hotel premises on August 30 when a Delhi-based businessman, who imports laser tubes ,was allegedly duped by a man called Baburao and his accomplices. The complainant was duped of Rs 23.5 lakh. A spokesperson for the Taj Mahal Palace and Hotel said, “None of the hotel’s standard procedures have been violated in these incidents.

srinath.rao@expressindia.com