THANE: Police have booked a former academic counsellor from an educational institute in Thane for allegedly cheating students and using their personal data to collect money illegally, officials said on Monday.According to investigators, the counsellor stopped coming to work in July this year but continued to approach students, pretending he was still with the institute, which offers analytics and technology training programmes.He allegedly collected Rs 48,866 from students without the institute’s knowledge, an officer from Naupada police station said.“The accused misused student data and collected money directly from them into his personal mobile-linked account. He did not inform the students that he was no longer associated with the institute and misled them under various pretexts,” the official said.After the institute filed a complaint, police registered a case on Saturday under BNS Sections 316(4) (criminal breach of trust) and 318(4) (cheating).
