Pune: A man and his female partner allegedly duped a jeweller of nearly Rs15 lakh on pretext of purchasing gold jewellery. Chandannagar police are searching for them.The accused gained the confidence of the branch manager of the showroom and gave him a cheque, which subsequently bounced. The manager lodged a complaint with the police on Thursday.The duo visited the store in Chandannagar on Aug 3 and selected gold, silver and diamond jewellery collectively worth Rs 96 lakh, claiming they were getting married. The man handed over a cheque for the amount and told the manager he would collect the jewellery a few days before his marriage.An officer from Chandannagar police said, “Accused claimed he runs a windmill construction firm and hails from Baramati. He also claimed to know the owner of the store well and had often purchased gold bars from the store for his employees.”On Aug 4, the man contacted the manager and requested her to arrange three gold bars, claiming his fiancée would pay her by cheque. His fiancée handed over a cheque for Rs14.8 lakh and took the gold bars. The manager later found cheque had bounced due to insufficient funds. She deposited another cheque for Rs96 lakh, which bounced as well. “When both accused did not respond to calls, the branch manager lodged the complaint. We have registered a case of criminal breach of trust and cheating against the duo,” the officer said.
