Police in Delhi have arrested a 29-year-old Nigerian man accused of duping more than 100 women across India by posing as a UK-based Korean businessman on a language exchange app.
The suspect, identified as Stephane but known online as Dominic or Duck Young, was picked up from his rented flat in Tilak Nagar, west Delhi, on Monday, September 29.
Investigators said his scheme was simple but devastating. Using the app, which connects people looking to practise languages, he hunted single women, gained their trust, and then spun elaborate lies about being stuck at immigration with cheques or documents needing clearance.
His accomplices would call victims while impersonating officials, demanding money for his “release.” Many women, believing they were helping a friend—or even a future partner—transferred large sums digitally.
The scam blew open after a woman named Anjali reported losing Rs 48,500. She said “Duck Young” told her he was detained at Mumbai airport, and she soon got calls from supposed immigration officers asking her to pay more. When she refused to send an additional Rs 2 lakh, he vanished.
Police traced him through call records, bank accounts, and social media, eventually recovering a mobile phone loaded with fake profiles and chats involving over 100 women.
During interrogation, he confessed he had entered India in 2019 on a six-month tourist visa using an Ivorian passport to bypass restrictions Nigerians faced at the time. After overstaying illegally and running out of money, he turned to cyber fraud.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara), Prashant Gautam, said the case shows how romance, trust, and technology can be twisted into weapons for exploitation.
