Pahala police arrested Ranjib Kumar Pradhan for allegedly cheating a woman and her family of ₹22 lakh by posing as a doctor and promising marriage with his fictitious “brother.”
According to police, Pradhan created a fake profile on a matrimony website in 2021 under the name Dr Prakash Pradhan. He claimed that his younger brother, Tushar Pradhan, worked as a deputy manager at the State Bank of India in Rayagada. Through this false identity, he contacted the complainant’s family for a proposed marriage.
After gaining their trust, Pradhan allegedly collected Rs 22 lakh from the woman’s father, claiming the money would be invested in various bank policies.
Once he received the money, Pradhan stopped responding to calls and messages. Suspecting fraud, the woman lodged a complaint at the Pahala police station.
Investigators discovered that Pradhan was neither a doctor nor had any brothers. Technical analysis revealed that two mobile numbers used in the fraud were linked to the same handset and operated by him.
Call detail records and bank account verification confirmed Pradhan’s use of multiple identities to cheat the family. He posed as both Dr Prakash Pradhan and Tushar Pradhan to carry out the fraud.
Police arrested him based on the evidence and produced him before a local court for further proceedings.
