Bhubaneswar, Nov. 4 -- Around 70 students have allegedly been cheated of nearly Rs 5 lakh in a house rental scam in Bhubaneswar, where a mother-son duo reportedly used online rental listings to lure people looking for accommodation. The accused allegedly targeted students from Odisha and other states, collected advance payments and kept postponing the promised date of handing over the houses.

The alleged fraud was being operated from the Paikanagar area. Nayapalli police arrested the mother and her son and forwarded them to court on Tuesday.

Students who responded to rental advertisements on websites such as OLX said they were asked to pay advance amounts after being shown the property or discussing the rental terms. However, even after...