V. Balaji
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The Egmore Police have arrested a 48-year-old man on charges of cheating Don Bosco School of Excellence in Egmore, Chennai, to the tune of ₹18.76 lakh, after he allegedly collected money from the management under the pretext of organising a trip for teachers to Punjab and Kashmir.
The accused, identified as V. Balaji, 48, of Alwarpet, is a parent of a student at the school. He falsely claimed he ran a travel agency and duped the school, the police said. Balaji was arrested by the police based on a complaint from Tony Robert, the principal of the school.
Police sources said Mr. Robert had decided to send over 50 teachers of the school on a trip to Punjab and Kashmir during the summer vacation in April 2024. Balaji approached the principal to organise the trip, claiming he operated a travel agency by the name of Zonasis Private Limited. The management agreed, and transferred ₹18.76 lakh to his bank account.
When the date of the trip approached, Balaji advised the principal to postpone the tour, saying elections were to be held in Kashmir and that he could not promise the safety of the teachers.
The police said he made several excuses to postpone the tour. Eventually, none of the teachers wanted to go on the trip as the schools had reopened.
When the principal subsequently cancelled the tour, Balaji said he would not refund the money paid to him, the police said.
A complaint was lodged, and on investigation, it was found that Balaji did not own a travel agency. A case was registered under Sections 316 (criminal breach of trust) and 318 (cheating) of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita. The Crime Inspector of Egmore police station C. Vetriselvan arrested Balaji on charges of cheating, and he was remanded in judicial custody.
Published – December 06, 2024 05:08 pm IST