Bengaluru: Techie, 35, sexually exploits teacher, cheats her of Rs 38 lakh

BENGALURU: A 35-year-old software engineer has been arrested for allegedly exploiting a 34-year-old teacher he met on a dating app sexually and financially.
Joe Abraham Mathews alias Mathews Thazhanth Prasad, a resident of Koramangala and from Kerala, has cheated several other women, especially divorcees, by promising to marry them and then collecting lakhs of rupees from them.
The teacher, a divorcee from Nagarabhavi, got to know him in October 2018 through a dating app. Later, they met at a pub in Koramangala. "He convinced her that he runs a car business and had lost money in the venture. He sought financial assistance from her to pay for his sister's college fee and got Rs 10 lakh from her. Later, he took Rs 21.9 lakh more and gold jewellery worth Rs 6 lakh. He promised her that he would marry her. In all, he took away Rs 38 lakh," a police officer said.
Joe also sexually misused the teacher. The woman filed a complaint with Vivekanagar police on June 3.
"We registered a case of rape, cheating and criminal intimidation against Joe and arrested him on Thursday. We produced him before the magistrate court, which remanded him in police custody," an officer said.
Joe told police that he cheated two women on the pretext of marriage and duped some of his friends of crores of rupees. He came to Bengaluru 20 years ago and settled here after his education. He worked as software engineer with private firms in initial days. He was in the UK and Australia for a few years. He returned to Bengaluru four years ago.
"He posed as a big businessman and used posh cars to lure people," a friend cheated by Joe said.
Police registered a cheating case against Joe in January based on a complaint filed Sajan Zacharias, a retired flight lieutenant. Joe took Rs 17 lakh from Sajan.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)