A Delhi-based journalist fell prey to a scam orchestrated by a woman he met on the Bumble dating app, even as she claimed that she was looking for a “meaningful connection”, only to abandon the date mid-way in haste after making him place an order for drinks and food for which he ended up paying over Rs 15,000, and eventually going “incognito”.
Taking to social media platform ‘X’, Archit Gupta detailed the unfolding of events, describing what he went through as “not just a fraud but emotional harassment”.
He recalled how a woman named Divya Sharma (an alias, later identified by Truecaller as Aifya) initiated contact on the Bumble dating app, expressing interest in a meaningful connection.
Also Read: Honey trapped retired soldier ends life, body fished out from lake
The ‘deceptive date’ led him to an establishment called “The Race Lounge and Bar” — a venue Gupta had reservations about — in west Delhi’s Rajouri Garden, where he allegedly ended up footing a bill of around Rs 16,000 for sub-par drinks and food.
“I thought, let’s take a chance on Bumble and see if there is a genuine person to date. A girl named Divya Sharma (fake name) approached me and asked me to meet her at Rajouri Garden. She convinced me that she was looking for something meaningful,” he wrote in the note shared on X.
Upon returning from the restroom, Gupta discovered that the bill he left on the table had disappeared.
“She took me to a bar, The Race Lounge and Bar. Despite not being convinced of the place, Aifya (her real name, as per Truecaller) insisted that I sit there. She ordered some drinks for herself. I don’t drink, so I just ordered a Red Bull. The bill for a hookah, 2-3 glasses of wine, 1 vodka shot, chicken tikka, and a water bottle was Rs 15,886,” he further stated.
“I was shocked after seeing the bill. I paid for the bill. They tapped my card four times as there was some issue with their machine. Before leaving the place, I went to the washroom, and upon returning, I realized that the bill I left on the table was not there. She insisted on leaving the place, saying that her brother is coming to pick her up. When I came home, I realized that this was a scam,” he wrote.
“I checked, and she had just disappeared and was not picking up my calls. Then I searched and found a story on a media outlet, and I got to know about how these clubs and bars are hiring girls and doing this fraud. This is not just about money; this is emotional and mental abuse for a person who thinks that the person sitting in front of him is genuine. I investigated the whole thing and found some reviews on the Google page of that lounge,” he further wrote.
(This story is sourced from a third-party syndicated feed. Raavi Media takes no responsibility or liability of any nature. Raavi Media management/ythisnews.com can alter or delete the content without notice for any reason.)
