THANE: A 38-year-old man from Maharashtra’s Nandurbar district has been booked for allegedly raping a woman and cheating her of Rs 41.25 lakh after posing as a wealthy businessman on a matrimonial website, police said on Sunday. The complainant, a 36-year-old divorcee, lives with her child in the Kalyan East area of Thane district, an official from Kolsewadi police station said according to news agency PTI. According to police, the accused created a fake profile on the matrimonial platform, portraying himself as a millionaire hotelier and civil engineer. He allegedly gained the woman’s trust by promising to marry her and assuring her that he would accept her child. Police said the man allegedly sexually assaulted the woman multiple times at hotels in Panvel, Navi Mumbai, and at her residence in Kalyan.“The accused swindled Rs 41.25 lakh from her, forged documents to sell one of her cars, and unauthorisedly seized another vehicle,” a police official said, citing the FIR. Investigators suspect the accused may have targeted other women using a similar method. Efforts are underway to locate and apprehend him, police said.
