Couple held for cheating

Duo paid bills using fake Paytm app

The Vashi police have arrested a couple for allegedly duping shopkeepers by using a fake version of the Paytm application. Clothes worth ₹38,000 have been recovered from them. The accused have been identified as Prem Navrottam Solanki (31) and Preeti Rajesh Yadav alias Tanvi Sharma (23). According to the police, the accused would visit several shops, malls and restaurants and buy expensive items. They would then pretend to pay the bill using the fake Paytm app and show a fake message that the payment had been completed. However, no amount would have been deducted. It was only later that the shopkeepers realised they had been cheated. The police said the couple met each other at an interview and decided to team up to dupe people. On March 9, they bought clothes worth ₹38,000 from a boutique at Sector 11 in Vashi and paid the bill using the fake app. When the owner realised the fraud, she filed a police complaint.