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Nath also reportedly faked the death of his wife and mother. (Representative Image)
Once Nath initiated contact through marriage proposals, he would engage in lengthy phone conversations and home visits, during which he employed emotional manipulation tactics to exploit his victims.
The Odisha Police Crime Branch has apprehended a 43-year-old con man, Biranchi Narayan Nath, from Chhendipada in Angul district. Nath is accused of deceiving approximately 15 women nationwide under the guise of marriage. His main victims were middle-aged women and widows seeking to remarry.
As per the report by the Times Of India (TOI), he registered a fake profile on several matrimony sites and used the tagline
“Second Marriage.” He mostly cheated the women who were unmarried, divorced or separated. Nath used to lure them by posing as a railway employee, an income tax inspector, customs officer among others.
Once Nath had made contact through marriage proposals, he pursued prolonged telephone calls and home visits wherein he would use emotional tactics on his victims. He demanded and received large amounts of money, gold and valuable items threatening to post explicit pictures/videos of these women online.
The case against Nath was initiated when a woman from Cuttak lodged a complaint to the Cyber Crime Unit of the CID – Crime Branch, TOI reported.
The woman whose husband reportedly succumbed in a road accident in 2022 posted her profile on a matrimonial site in October 2023 with the intention of getting another husband.
She reportedly received a marriage proposal from Nath, who said he was Pravakar Srivastav from the Talcher area of Odisha and that he was a TTE (Travelling Ticket Examiner) posted in Visakhapatnam.
Nath also faked the death of his wife and mother. On the contrary, his parents, wife and two children reside in Angul.
As per the report, on October 7, 2023, the accused went to the home of the victim and told his intention of going ahead with the wedding.
“While the victim’s family asked for some time to decide, he started calling her frequently and trapped her emotionally,” a crime branch officer informed TOI.
It emerged that during video calls, he was recording her nude videos without her knowledge or consent. He also started taking her on trips outside Odisha. But after getting married he reportedly moved into her house with her for five months. He then proceeded to sexually and financially abuse her by using the objectionable videos, as per the report.
Nath threatened to upload their intimate images and videos and demanded around Rs 5 lakh and 32 grams of gold from the woman, police told TOI.
The officer shared with the news outlet that, while investigating the case, they discovered that he had scammed several other women across many states.
His phone details revealed that 15 fifteen women fell prey to his deception and he had outstanding warrants for his arrest in Berhampur, Balasore, Angul, Dhenkanal, Rourkela, and Bhubaneswar.
Read More: Odisha Man Marries 15 Women, Threatens to Post Intimate Videos Online for Ransom – News18
