Indian police are searching for a man who stayed at a five-star hotel in Delhi for four months posing as a senior member of the Arab royal family. He fled without paying his bills, which were worth more than Rs2.3 million (around Dh100,000), officials said on Tuesday.
In August last year, Mahamed Shareef checked into the Leela Palace-New Delhi. He was staying in room number 427 and fled the hotel on November 20, they said.
Aside from cheating the hotel of Rs2.3 million in outstanding bills, he also left with valuables, including silver bottle holders and a mother-of-pearl tray.
Shareef checked into the hotel claiming to work for a GCC government office. He gave them a fake business card, according to police.
In its complaint, the hotel management said that the guest gave these cards to create a false image and gain extra trust in order to cheat and deceive the hotel later on.
"The guest had also made several part payments for room charges worth Rs1 million in August and September 2022. The total outstanding still stands at Rs2,348,413 against which he had issued a post-dated cheque worth Rs2 million due for November 21, 2022, which was duly submitted to our bank on September 22, 2022, but due to insufficient funds, the cheque bounced,” it said.
According to a senior police official, the man fled the hotel with valuables on November 20 last year around 1pm.
We were under the impression that the hotel would clear the dues through the check he had submitted by November 22, 2022," said the complainant.
This clearly indicates that Mr. Shareef intended to deceive hotel authorities with malafide intentions. This is a clear case of theft, cheating and fraud against The Leela Palace, New Delhi,” the complaint stated.
According to the official, footage from CCTV cameras installed inside and outside the hotel is being reviewed to determine Shareef's activities.
To find the accused man, multiple teams have been formed. We have not been able to establish his occupation yet and are working to gather his personal details. We've put his phone number under surveillance to find out where he was last seen," he said.