Scammers who lured customers to pubs via dating apps have allegedly been defrauding club owners of crores. This aspect of the racket came to light when Arshad Subedar, who owns clubs in Malad and Thane, filed a complaint with the Mumbai police on September 21. Subedar accused a public relations (PR) team—allegedly part of the dating apps gang—of cheating him out of more than Rs 1.5 crore.

According to the complainant, most of the accused are Delhi residents and were previously associated with Ankur Meena, a wanted figure in the dating app scam. After separating from Meena, one Jatin Gera allegedly began running a similar racket until the Bangur Nagar police busted the gang and arrested members of Meena’s group.