Four French tourists were allegedly conned by a Madurai-based tour operator who promised them a tour package of South India and collected a sum of € 5,535. City police have registered a case and launched a hunt for the operator.
Police sources said Perrowcell Thierry (57), Ghislaine Rowel (56), Claudia Vitiello (65) and Jackie Le Roux (65), in December, contacted a travel agent online who promised a tour of South India. Thierry made an online transfer of € 2,500 from France and promised to deposit the rest of the sum when they arrived in India.
Thierry and his three friends landed on March 3 and transferred a sum of nearly € 3,000 to the operator. They then went on a tour of north India and arrived in Ooty on March 18. “The problems began when the agent, identified as Hariharan from Thirumangalam in Madurai, refused to pay the room rent, demanding an additional € 1,500 which the French national refused to pay. Both parties approached the Ooty Town West police station,” said an officer from Arumbakkam police station.
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Not convinced by police response and believing that they had been cheated sans a full South India tour, the four tourists approached the Police Commissioner’s office on Monday. They were directed to the Arumbakkam police station following which a case has been registered. A search is on for Hariharan who is suspected to be an unauthorised travel agent, sources said.