ROURKELA: Five persons were arrested on Saturday for allegedly posing as Hindu spiritualists and cheating a couple on the pretext of performing rituals to ward off misfortune.
The accused were identified as Gugu Panda (46), Dular Panda (31), Bishal Panda (28), Dhanu Panda (20) and Daktor Panda (20), all of Aurangabad in Bihar. Five metal statues of Hindu deities, about Rs 36,000 cash, six mobile phones, 38 gemstones and religious materials along with stolen silver and gold ornaments worth Rs 3 lakh were seized from their possession.
Sundargarh SDPO Nirmal Mohapatra said on April 23, three of the five accused dressed as Hindu priests arrived at the house of one Gobardhan Oram (38) at Lankahuda village. “They deceitfully induced Oram and his wife to believe that some misfortune was to befall on them. Subsequently, they performed some rituals and demanded gold and money for warding off the evil,” the SDPO said.
However, when the couple expressed their inability to pay the sum and valuables, the trio threatened them that non-compliance would bring harm to their children. In the meantime, two others joined in and the five together managed to instill fear in the couple’s minds. Eventually, they decamped with one pair of gold ear-drops and Rs 1,000 cash, Mohapatra said.
Later basing on Oram’s complaint, police launched an investigation and arrested the accused from Jharsguda. The conmen frequently changed locations after cheating unsuspecting persons to avoid getting caught, the SDPO said adding, further investigation was underway.