Around 150 tourists have lodged a complaint with the Beijing tourist bureau, claiming they were swindled out of 7 million yuan by an agent claiming to be from the Beijing Xinhua tourist agency.

The holidaymakers lodged the complaint on Saturday, saying they were compelled to hand over the money as a travel deposit for a trip to Australia and New Zealand that took place during Spring Festival.

They are calling on the agency to accept responsibility for the situation and refund their deposits immediately.

Beijing Times reported that a former Xinhua tourist agency worker, named Lu Lili, who left the agency last November, organized the 12-day tour in the name of Xinhua tourist agency.

The total cost of the holiday was 3,500 yuan per person, which compared to a typical holiday of the same type that might have cost more than 20,000 yuan. However, the cheap holiday called on would-be travelers to make a 30,000 yuan deposit, said the newspaper.

The holidaymakers are now complaining that the 30,000 yuan deposit was never returned to them.

The director of quality supervision at the Beijing tourist bureau told METRO Lu has been arrested by the Chaoyang district public security bureau.

"The case is still under investigation," said Zhu. "It is too early to say if it was the wrongdoing of Xinhua tourist agency or Lu or both."

Zhu said around 150 tourists signed up for the tour and paid between 6 and 7 million yuan in deposits.

Several of those who paid over the money want the travel agency to take responsibility for the incident and refund the money.

A tourist, surnamed Zhang, said one of her relatives signed up for a tour of Britain with Xinhua travel agency last August. The holiday cost around 4,500 yuan but a 50,000 yuan deposit was required.

She said her relative got her deposit back after the holiday.

"My relative got her deposit back immediately after she returned from Britain, so I thought the tour agency was trustworthy," she said in an interview with Beijing Times.

Zhang left for Australia on Jan 22. However, when she tried to get her deposit back from the travel agency, she found Lu had been arrested.

"We signed the contract with the Xinhua travel agency," Zhang said. "We didn't know Lu wasn't working for it anymore. So, the agency should take responsibility."

However, the Xinhua travel agency disagreed.

The secretary of the Party committee at Xinhua agency, surnamed Xing, said Lu left her job in November and was not acting on behalf of the agency.

Xing said Lu is suspected of having illegally engraved the company's seal and signed contracts with tourists in the company's name but without the company's consent.

"We are victims as well," he said.