Woman Loses Rs 93,600 While Booking Hotel For Stay In Odisha’s Puri, Shares Ordeal [Watch]

Puri: A woman allegedly lost Rs 93600 while booking a stay at Mayfair Heritage hotel in Odisha’s Puri through a fraudulent Google listing.

She recently shared her ordeal by uploading a video on her social media account, Instagram.

Shreya Mitra, a content creator, was planning a trip to Puri during Holi and searched for hotels online. She found a listing for Mayfair Heritage Puri and, believing it to be authentic, clicked on the top result. After retrieving the contact details, she called the provided number and inquired about booking her stay.

The scammers provided Shreya with pictures and details of the room, persuading her to finalise the booking by making the required payment. She transferred Rs 93,600 to confirm her reservation and also received a fake invoice, but when she asked for an email confirmation, she was told that the system was down.

The following morning, she received another call from the fraudsters, instructing her to open the Google Pay app, select ‘Pay’ and enter a given 5-6 digit booking ID to receive confirmation. Sensing something was off, Shreya refused to comply and again requested an official email following which the fraudsters abruptly hung up the phone.

Realising she had been deceived, she searched for the official e-mail of Mayfair Heritage Puri and sent them all details of her conversation and booking only to be told that the listing she had used was entirely fraudulent.

The cybercrime department has taken down the fake Google listing, and an investigation is currently underway.

Shreya shared her experience on Instagram, urging others to stay vigilant when booking hotels online. She stressed the importance of verifying official websites, cross-checking contact details, and refraining from making advance payments to unverified sources.

“It’s hard to understand if it’s a fake Mayfair when the first search takes you to the fake webpage and details for Mayfair Heritage Puri. The scammers are still scamming people, the number is still active, and they have multiple bank accounts. Please share it forward especially if you’re in the East, because many people look at booking them during the holiday season,” she wrote on Instagram. 

Check her post here: