A 53-year-old woman was arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly conning people to the tune of ₹36 lakh over the past year by promising them government jobs.
Anita Panikar, a resident of Nanakpura, was nabbed after South Moti Bagh resident Sunita filed a complaint against her.
Ms. Sunita said the accused, who had introduced herself as a government official, had promised a job for her son as lower division clerk or upper division clerk in exchange of ₹3 lakh. Of the amount demanded, Ms. Sunita gave her ₹75,000.
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Call records
“Ms. Sunita decided to check up on the accused. However, Ms. Panikar was nowhere to be found. She had even vacated the house she was staying in,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) Ishwar Singh, adding that an FIR has been filed against the accused under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code.
The police scanned Ms. Panikar’s call records after her mobile phone was found switched off. The police then discovered that the accused was in constant touch with one Arjun. When questioned, he told the police that she was staying in south Delhi’s Yusuf Sarai.
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Address changed
“She was arrested from near a guest house,” he said.
She allegedly confessed to having cheated several people to the tune of ₹36 lakh and that her targets were poor people looking for government jobs. “She used to demand ₹3 lakh per person. The accused stayed in rented accommodations and kept changing her address to avoid detection,” said the officer.