5 Arrested In Bhubaneswar For Selling Hockey World Cup Tickets In Black

Bhubaneswar: The Twin City Commissionerate Police on Wednesday arrested five persons for allegedly selling tickets for FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup match between India and Wales, which was played at Kalinga Stadium in Odisha capital on Tuesday, in the black market.

According to sources, they were selling the Rs 100, Rs 200, and Rs 500 tickets for Rs 1,000, Rs 2,200, and Rs 4,000 respectively outside the stadium. They were also selling tickets for matches scheduled on January 19, January 24 and January 29.

The fraudsters had also posted on their respective social media accounts mentioning about tickets being available for the matches of the ongoing Marquee event. Once they received messages from prospective buyers, they texted them to arrive near Kalinga Stadium to collect the tickets after paying the amount.

On getting the information, Saheed Nagar police arrested the fraudsters. The arrested accused have been identified as Saroj Sethi (23), Saroj Kumar Bal(37), Lingaraj Mohanty (31), Md Tahim, and Rashmi Sahu (32).

“They are residents of Nayapalli and we have seized 35 tickets and Rs 10,3oo in cash from them. Teams to check such illegal activities,” Bhubaneswar DCP Prateek Singh told the media.

The Hockey World Cup, which began on January 13, will continue till January 29. The matches are being played at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and newly-built Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela.