Nagpur Woman Arrested for Cheating Pune Senior Citizen of Rs 11.5 Lakh on Pretext of Marriage
Pune, 23rd October 2025: The Bibwewadi police have arrested a 28-year-old woman from Nagpur for allegedly cheating a senior citizen from Pune’s Bibwewadi area of ₹11.5 lakh under the pretext of marriage.
The arrested woman has been identified as Harshala Rakesh Dengle, a resident of New Omnagar, Hudkeshwar Road, Nagpur. Police have seized ₹11.45 lakh in cash and three mobile phones from her possession.
According to police, the complainant (85) came across a matrimonial advertisement in a leading Marathi newspaper and contacted the number mentioned in it on April 18, 2025. The accused, who identified herself as “Mamta Joshi,” began communicating with the senior citizen and gradually gained his trust. The complainant stays with his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. His wife had passed away 11 years ago.
Dengle later told him that she was in Kolhapur because her cousin had met with an accident and that she urgently needed money for treatment. Believing her, the senior citizen transferred ₹11.47 lakh to her account over multiple transactions for various purported reasons.
When the accused continued to demand money on different pretexts, the senior citizen grew suspicious and realised he had been cheated. He subsequently lodged a complaint at Bibwewadi Police Station on June 1. Based on his complaint, a case was registered under relevant sections of the BNS for cheating and the Information Technology Act.
During the technical investigation, police traced the accused to Nagpur. A team from Bibwewadi Police Station detained her and recovered the defrauded cash along with three mobile phones. Dengle was produced before the Shivajinagar court, where a charge sheet was filed, and she was later granted bail.
The investigation was carried out under the supervision of Additional Commissioner of Police Manoj Patil, Deputy Commissioner Dr. Rajkumar Shinde, and Assistant Commissioner Dhanyakumar Godse. The operation was led by Senior Police Inspector Ashwini Satpute of Bibwewadi Police Station, along with Crime Branch Inspector Suraj Bendre and police personnel Santosh Jadhav, Vishal Jadhav, Medha Gaikwad, and Prateek Karanje.
Police have cautioned citizens against falling prey to online or newspaper matrimonial scams. They advised individuals seeking marriage to use only official and verified matrimonial websites and to avoid sharing personal or financial details with strangers.
