BHUBANESWAR: In a major crackdown, Puri police arrested 11 people for impersonating as sevayats and extorting money from the devotees at the Shree Jagannath Temple. The group were mostly targeting the devotees from outside the state. They wore the traditional attire of the temple servitors and behaved like them to lure the unsuspecting visitors.
Police had received information that the accused persons were active on Bada Danda and Parikrama Road. SP in-charge Pinak Mishra constituted a special team and launched an operation to nab the frauds.
The team found out that the gang was not only extorting devotees but also resorting to intimidation and violence against them inside the temple.
“The accused persons were approaching the devotees on the pretext of guiding them during their visit to Shree Jagannath Temple in exchange for money. If the visitors refused to pay the money, they resorted to abuse, threats and even violence,” Mishra said.
They were cheating devotees on the promise of performing puja and facilitating their darshan in the temple. Singhadwar and Town police stations had registered one case each in this connection. Police recovered 14 mobile phones and Rs 20,000 cash from them.