Fake flight ticket: Woman falls victim to travel agent’s fraud

Bengaluru: A 24-year-old woman allegedly used a fake ticket to enter the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) here on February 11, according to a police complaint. 

However, investigations revealed that the woman herself was a victim, as her agent had booked the ticket and given it to her. 

The woman used her ticket to Ranchi and reached the Passenger Terminal Building Gate of the airport’s Terminal 1 around 7.30 am on February 11 to board the flight. 

While her ticket mentioned it was for the Ranchi-bound SpiceJet SG 320, there was no such flight scheduled at that hour. The SG 320 flight actually operates between Bengaluru and the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi Airport in Guwahati, Assam. 

SpiceJet officers notified the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and requested them to take her to the police station. 

An investigator in the case said that the airline officers immediately detected that the ticket was fake and grilled the woman. 

"They had inquired about her ticket details and where she had booked it. She claimed it was booked through an agent, which confirmed to them that it was fake and sent her to the police station,” the officer told DH. 

The Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) police have filed an FIR against the woman under BNS sections 336(2) (forgery) and 340 (use of forged documents or electronic records). 

When the police interrogated the woman, she claimed that she knew the agent through her friends and had called him for ticket booking. She had also made full payment for the ticket and collected it from him, according to the police. 

The investigator said that they served her a notice and asked her to provide payment and contact details of the agent. As the sections invoked are not serious, she was let go. 

Booking tickets through such agents is not a new development, according to the police. Usually, travellers verify the authenticity of the ticket by calling the customer care or checking the ticket status, but here the woman hadn’t done it, said the police. 

Interstate students say they usually book tickets on third-party travel apps. However, during peak holiday seasons, agents come in handy because there is a high demand for tickets, and offer attractive discounts.

Police have cautioned about such dubious agents and suggested that travellers always verify their tickets.