Picture for representational purpose only.

BENGALURU: The dream of leading a blissful, married life with newfound girlfriend from Italy came crashing down for this 45-year-old Chikkaballapura electrician, who was also left poorer by Rs 33 lakh. The hapless man has now approached police as a victim of matrimonial fraud.

RK Muniraja of Teachers’ Colony in Chikkaballapura town, 60km from Bengaluru, has stated that tryst with the sweet-talking fraudster has landed him in debt. The electrician ’s story started after he divorced his wife and registered himself on a matrimonial website.

Masters in sociology , Muniraja met Daksha Patel J online on August 31. After frequent chatting, she expressed interest in him and said she wanted to marry him.

I’ve lost everything: Fraud victim

She claimed she’s rich, but had been denied the kind of love he showered on her. She told him she would convince her parents about the marriage and transfer Rs 1.5 crore to his account before relocating to India.

On September 8, she told him she was heading to India with Rs 1.5 crore in foreign currency. Later, she called him and said she has been detained at Delhi airport by customs officials for carrying a huge amount of cash. She told Muniraja she needed to pay the customs officials to receive a clearance certificate for the foreign currency and sought money in Indian rupees from him.

Moved by her story, Muniraja raised loans and withdrew Rs 5 lakh from his savings and transferred Rs 33 lakh to the list of bank accounts she sent him. After the money was transferred, the doors started shutting on him, and her phone numbers. He approached the branch manager of a bank who told him he had become a victim of fraud. Muniraja said he had built his dream at a huge cost: Paying Rs 1 lakh monthly interest on loans he had raised for her. He said, “Call it stupidity or greed, I’ve lost everything. I used to speak to her in broken English believing she was genuine. I appeal to all to be cautious while engaging strangers online.”

