According to the police, Sachin (name changed), a barber, was asked to deposit Rs 14,000 in a bank account to secure the job of a masseur and establish physical relationship with a woman.

The Rajkot city Crime Branch has traced the number of a mobile phone and a bank account, which were used to dupe Sachin.

While the account was opened in an ICICI Bank branch at Chennai, the cellphone number was registered in the name of a resident of Ahmedabad.

The bank account, from which Rs 50,000 were withdrawn on January 12, now shows a balance of only Rs 1,000. The police suspect that more people have been duped in a similar manner by the same gang.

Crime branch officials said that it all started when Sachin dialled a number given in an advertisement asking for services of a trained or untrained female body masseur.

The police said that when Sachin first dialled the number given in the advertisement last month, a female on the other side asked him to deposit Rs 3,000 as guarantee money in an ICICI Bank account.

Later, he was asked to deposit Rs 5,000 as registration fees. In return, Sachin was given the cellphone number of a woman who introduced herself as a model named Prachi Desai.

Sachin, in his complaint registered with the police, said that Prachi told him she sought not only massage services but also looked forward to having physical relationship with him.

She had promised Sachin that in return he will be given a job of Rs 20,000.

Later, Sachin was asked to deposit another Rs 6,000. Prachi had reasoned that as she belonged to high society, she hoped that the guarantee money deposited by Sachin would stop him from spilling the beans, said the police.

When Sachin deposited Rs 6,000, Prachi asked him to meet her at a place on the Kalawad Road.

The police said Prachi never turned up and after that conversation with Sachin her mobile remained switched off.

Preliminary investigations revealed that on January 12, Rs 50,000 were withdrawn from this account which was reportedly created in Chennai.