‘Social worker’ duping, extorting money from rich men arrested

Nagpur: City police have arrested a woman who used to target elderly rich men and extort money from them by having a fake love affair. The accused, identified as Preeti Das, 39, has several offences registered against her. She used to target citizens through social media platforms.
Sources said that the accused also had close connections with several senior police officials. It’s learnt that some officials also fell prey to her ‘honey traps’.
In the incident that nailed her, Preeti came in contact with Umesh alias Guddu Tiwari through a social media platform. The duo started chatting and soon became friends. Preeti told Tiwari that after he divorces his wife, they can get married.
After gaining Tiwari’s trust, Preeti told him that she can help him get a flat and took Rs2.6 lakh. However, even after several months, Preeti did not book any flat. When Tiwari asked her to return the money, the accused threatened him, saying she would file a fake case. The accused again extorted Rs2.42 lakh from Tiwari by threatening to file a fake case.
For several months, the accused extorted cash and gifts collectively worth Rs14.87 lakh from Tiwari who finally approached Pachpaoli police station and filed a complaint.
The accused had even targeted rich men from the city and other districts of Vidarbha. In 2010, an offence of fraud was registered against her at Sitabuldi police station while in 2016, another offence was registered against her in Bhandara.
Sources said the accused used to pose as a social worker on social media and used to target rich men. She used to lure them with different promises before duping them. She had also targeted several youngsters by luring them with fake job promises by claiming to have close connections with senior government officials.
City police have urged citizens to come forward and file a complaint if they have fallen prey to the fraud of this woman.