Trickster posing as a UAE royal family staff cheated Leela Palace hotel of huge bill
text_fields
New Delhi: A man who stayed at Leela Palace Hotel in the city fled after running up a bill of Rs 23 lakh, police said.
The man now identified as Md Sharif is wanted on a complaint lodged by the hotel management on Saturday.
He checked into the hotel with a fake business card, claiming to be a resident of United Arab Emirates and employee of the royal family of Abu Dhabi.
From August 1 to November 20 last year, Md Sharif stayed in room number 427 at the hotel for over four months.
Alongside accumulating a huge bill, the man left the place stealing silverware and other items from the hotel room.
The complaint said that Sharif told hotel authorities he worked with the Office of Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of the royal family of Abu Dhabi.
Sharif convinced the hotel staff he was in India on an official purpose and worked with the Sheikh personally.
He gained trust expanding on his “work and life in the UAE” and sounded “influential”, said the police.
He produced a fake business card, UAE resident card and other documents, which are now being checked, according to The Indian Express.
The total bill of the room was Rs 35 lakh of which Sharif paid almost Rs 11.5 lakh to stay for longer period at the hotel.
Later he gave the hotel a cheque of Rs 20 lakh which when submitted in November bounced due to insufficient funds, police said.
“We don’t think his ID cards are genuine and he is not related to the royal family in Abu Dhabi. We are checking if he has done this before” senior police officer reportedly said.
Police said they are looking for his personal details and occupation, adding that it is unclear where he stayed before coming to the five star hotel.
