A couple, who posed as a loco pilot and a helper with Southern Railways, cheated a woman of cash and gold totalling nearly ₹4 lakh after promising to get her son a job at Yeshwanthpur railway station. The incident took place on Friday.
In her complaint, the victim, Shashikala D., 45, who works as a bus conductor, said that she was at Yeshwanthpur railway station to board a train to Hassan – where she hails from – when she met the couple. The man introduced himself as Hanumantha, a loco pilot, while his wife, Sunandamma, claimed she was a helper who worked at the station. During the course of the conversation, the couple learned that Shashikala’s son had completed his second pre-university.
At this point, Sunandamma mentioned that she was planning to leave her job due to cardiac-related health issues and offered to help get her son the job. “She said the job required some money to be paid to officials. Trusting the couple, Shashikala gave them ₹60,000. The couple said they would introduce her to the senior officer but advised her to remove the gold she was wearing,” said a police officer.
She followed their instructions and stashed her jewellery – valued at ₹3.5 lakh – in her bag. A few minutes later, the couple asked her to purchase a railway uniform for her son which they said was available at a store outside the railway station. “Following their advice, she kept her bag with them and left the station to buy the uniform, but quickly returned as she could not locate the shop,” said the police.
When Shashikala returned, she was unable to locate the couple who had disappeared with her bag and cash. When she enquired with railway staff about the local pilot Hanumanthu and helper Sunandamma, she learned that they were not employed there, and realised that she had been cheated.
Based on her complaint, the railway police have registered a case of cheating and are verifying CCTV footage to track down the couple.
