The Delhi Police have arrested a 29-year-old African national, Stephane, alias K Cee Dominic, for allegedly duping multiple Indian women by posing as a Korean jewellery businessman based in the UK.
The case came to light after a Shahdara woman filed a complaint stating that she had lost Rs48,500 to a scammer she met on the language-learning app HelloTalk. The accused used the profile name “Duck Young”, gradually building a connection with the victim.
Eventually, he claimed to be detained at Mumbai airport for not carrying medical documents. Soon after, two individuals posing as immigration officers called the victim, demanding money for his release. Following their instructions, she transferred Rs48,500 via UPI. When they demanded another Rs2 lakh, she refused, and all contact was cut off.
An FIR was filed on September 24, and the Cyber Cell of Shahdara Police launched an investigation. According to DCP Prashant Gautam, investigators used bank records, social media analysis, call detail records, and IP logs to trace the accused to Tilak Nagar, West Delhi.
Upon arrest, police seized Stephane’s mobile phone, which revealed he had chatted with over 100 women across India using the same fraudulent identity.
Police added that Stephane originally failed to secure an Indian visa as a Nigerian, so he travelled via Ivory Coast, eventually entering India on a six-month tourist visa in 2019. He remained in the country illegally and frequently shifted locations in West Delhi to avoid detection.
The investigation is ongoing to identify further victims and any accomplices involved in this digital romance scam.
