Both the victims and their families, who live in one-room tenements in a chawl, are in a state of shock even as the Bhosari police have launched a manhunt for the “smooth-talker” who took the two women for a ride.

Forty-four-year-old Chhaya Bagul in her complaint with the Bhosari police said a youngster, in his 20s, came to her residence and announced that she had a won a Yamaha motorcycle in a lottery contest conducted by Idea Cellular. “I was very delighted...He then asked me for my Idea card. When I told him that we no longer subscribe to the service, he asked me for a receipt of seven tolas of gold,” says Bagul. “I told him that I have around three-and-half tolas of gold but do not have the receipt for it.”

Even as Bagul was talking with the youth, one of her neighbours voluntereed to give three-and-half tolas of gold. “I gave the gold to Bagul so that she can get the receipt and bring home the Yamaha motorcycle,” the neighbour said on condition of anonymity.

The youth, astride his red Passion motorcyle, then took Chhaya Bagul to the Yamaha showroom in Kasarwadi. “There he showed me the vehicle I had supposedly won,” she says. After that he took her to the car mall opposite Sandvik Company. “Here he went inside telling me that he could get the gold measured and a receipt as well. I waited for a while. He then came down, shook hands with a person as if he knew him for a long time. Moments later, he zoomed off on his motorcycle. Despite my shouting and screaming, nobody came forward to catch him,” says Bagul.

Bagul says the youth was of medium height, wore a pair of jeans and red shirt. He spoke a mix of Hindi, Marathi and English. “He knew all the details about our family. While conversing with me, he was also talking on his mobile. Woh 18 number ka file rakhdane....He was trying to impress me that he had come from some big company,” says Bagul, adding, that she has already purchased three-and-half tolas of gold and handed over to the neighbour.