KOCHI: The marriage racket headed by Indore-native Megha Bhargav duped five men, and swindled `1.37 crores and gold jewellery from them.
According to the police, 27-year-old Megha, her sister Prachi Bhargav, 29, and her husband Devensh Sharma, 32, who were arrested recently, targeted rich men from across the country who are either divorcees or bachelors belonging to the Jain community.
Megha’s marriages were facilitated by Prachi and Devensh. Megha would spend a few days in the house of the prospective groom, and decamp with valuables after serving the family members with food and drinks spiked with sedatives.
“The racket began operation in 2012, when Megha married Rajesh Goleja of Raipur in Chattisgarh and duped him of `90 lakh. She went on and married four more persons - Hemanth Kumar of Gujarat, Sandesh Chopra of Jodhpur, Lenin Jithendar of Kochi and Arun Kumar of Surat, and cheated all of them in the same way,” said Ernakulam Central CI Ananthalal.
The gang landed in police net after Lenin Jithendar filed a complaint, alleging Megha had robbed him of `9 lakh and gold jewellery weighing 25 sovereigns in May 2015, a few weeks after their marriage. “Though the complainant’s family members visited Indore in search of Megha, her house was found closed. Later, they lodged complaint with the Kadavanthra police.
Following the arrest, the Kochi police issued alert to police stations in the other states. Megha, who hails from Indore, had recently shifted her base to Noida along with her sister and brother-in-law. Though the accused had sought anticipatory bail, the Kerala High Court directed them to surrender before the police.