A Delhi man planning a luxury vacation in Goa was scammed out of ₹33,000 while trying to book a stay at The LaLiT Golf & Spa Resort. The fraud began when the victim came across what appeared to be the resort's official website—an expertly crafted fake. Trusting the contact number listed, he called to make a reservation.
On the other end was Shahrukh Khan, a fraudster from Nuh, Haryana, posing as a booking executive from The LaLiT group. He convinced the victim to make a full UPI payment in one go, claiming technical issues with split payments. Shortly after the transaction, the victim received confirmation emails and messages mimicking the hotel's branding and professional tone.
When no booking was confirmed, the man realized he had been deceived and lodged a complaint with Delhi Police’s cyber crime unit. Investigators tracked the digital trail and found that the fake website had been registered with false credentials. The funds were traced to a merchant bank account in Nuh.
Following a series of raids, police arrested Khan and recovered mobile phones used in the scam. His accomplice, identified as Naseem, is still on the run.
Authorities have urged travelers to book only through verified hotel websites and to be cautious, especially when dealing with high-end brands like The LaLiT, which have become frequent targets for cyber fraud.