'Gigolo job' scam busted in Delhi, conmen preyed on male job seekers with 'playboy' bait

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A search for part-time work turned into a costly trap for a 27-year-old shoe salesman from Delhi’s Inderlok, who ended up losing Rs 27,135 to a fake “gigolo job” scam. The Central district cyber police have arrested two men allegedly behind the fraudulent operation, which targeted male job seekers with promises of high-paying “playboy” assignments.

As per TOI, the scam came to light when the victim lodged a complaint via the National Cyber Crime Portal. He had come across an online listing for so-called “playboy jobs” that promised generous payouts for visits to female clients. Upon calling the number listed, he was asked to pay a series of charges like registration fee, cab fare, hotel bookings, a massage kit, among others, none of which led to any actual employment.

“When he realised the so-called employer only wanted money and no job ever materialised, he filed a complaint,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Nidhin Valsan, as quoted in TOI.

Following the complaint, a case was registered and a cyber police team led by Inspector Sandeep Panwar and supervised by ACP Suresh Khunga was formed. Although the accused had switched off the mobile numbers used during the scam, the police relied on technical surveillance to trace their digital trail. The investigation led to the arrest of two men, 25-year-old Himanshu and 19-year-old Vishal, from Nangloi.

During interrogation, the accused confessed that they deliberately targeted men, believing that male victims would feel too embarrassed to report such frauds. Interestingly, Himanshu revealed that he had fallen prey to a similar scam two years ago and decided to replicate the fraud as a means to make easy money, TOI reported.

Himanshu, a diploma-holder in architecture, was unemployed. Vishal, his associate, is a school pass-out from Bihar’s Muzaffarpur, who joined Himanshu in the racket in an attempt to escape mounting personal debts.

Police recovered four mobile phones and two SIM cards used in the operation. Investigators found that the duo had procured SIM cards using fake identities and were posting gigolo job advertisements on multiple free classifieds websites to lure more victims.