Mumbai:

Mumbai’s Juhu police station has arrested an individual who tried to defraud Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar’s production company in the guise of providing employment in connection with a plan to defraud social media influencer Pooja Anandani.

The arrested suspect, Prince Kumar Sinha, 29, allegedly made fraudulent proposals to Ms Anandani but she avoided falling victim to her quick thinking.

Detailing the incident, the Juhu police officer revealed that the accused initially contacted Ms. Anandani and introduced himself as “Rohan Mehra”, allegedly an employee of Akshay Kumar’s production company Cape of Good Films.

Despite having no connection with the production company, the accused lured Ms. Anandani with job offers, claiming that he was involved in the production of a film based on the Nirbhaya case, and invited her to meet him in Juhu.

Their first encounter took place at a local cafe, where he allegedly asked Ms Anandani to take a photo taken by a photographer who claimed to be related to Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan.

Later, they arranged to meet at the JW Marriott Hotel in Zhuhu, and Ms. Anandani had informed the police about the situation.

Police immediately intervened and arrested Prince at the scheduled meeting location.

According to the information obtained by the Juhu police, on April 3, the accused contacted Ms. Anandani using the alias Rohan Mehra on her mobile phone and falsely claimed that she was an employee of Cape of Good Films.

However, investigations revealed that no such person worked at the production plant. When Ms. Anandani discovered the scam, she immediately notified the production company, confirming the scammer’s deception.

In response, Ms. Anandani lodged a complaint with the nearby Juhu police station, which led to the registration of a case against the culprits and their subsequent arrest.

The incident highlights the prevalence of fraudulent activity in the entertainment industry and highlights the importance of remaining vigilant against such scams.

Juhu police praised Ms. Anandani for her alertness in thwarting a potential scam. An investigation into the matter is ongoing and authorities urge individuals to exercise caution and verify the legitimacy of an offer before making a commitment.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)