India’s police have launched an investigation into a man who stayed as a guest in a five-star hotel for nearly two years and left without paying his bill.
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The man, now known to be named Ankush Dutta, booked a room for one night at the Roseate House Hotel in New Delhi on May 30, 2019.
He was supposed to check out the next day but extended his stay for 603 nights and remained in the hotel until January 22, 2021. During his stay, he accumulated a debt of over 5 million rupees (approximately $70,000), which he never paid.
The hotel management filed a complaint against the guest and several employees whom it alleged assisted the guest in his plot to leave the hotel without paying.
According to the complaint filed by the hotel, the employees colluded with Dutta and helped him conceal the growing debt from other staff and management. The luxury hotel is located near the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the Indian capital.
“As per hotel rules, if a guest owes more than 50,000 rupees to the hotel, the staff has to inform the senior officials and push the guest for payment. However, this was not done in Dutta’s case,” an Indian police official said.