Bengaluru: Man arrested for cheating people using 'black magic' rituals, Rs 53 lakh gold recovered

Bengaluru, Oct 14 (PTI) A 49-year-old man was arrested for allegedly cheating people by claiming to perform rituals to remove 'black magic' or 'retrieve hidden treasures', police said on Tuesday.

With the arrest of the accused, identified as Dada Peer, who operated under multiple aliases, police said they recovered 485.4 grams of stolen gold ornaments worth Rs 53 lakh.

The matter came to light on September 26, when Hulimavu police received a tip-off that a suspicious person was standing near Bannerghatta Main Road, police said.

Acting on the information, the station staff rushed to the spot, detained the man, and found he was a native of Kolar. Upon inspection, gold ornaments were recovered from his possession.

When questioned about their source, he confessed to stealing the ornaments and searching for buyers to sell them, a senior police officer said.

A case of theft was registered at Hulimavu police station, and the accused was formally arrested, police added.

During interrogation, the accused revealed that he deceived the public by claiming to perform rituals to 'remove black magic' or 'unearth hidden treasures' (nidhi). Gaining their trust, he would collect gold ornaments under the pretext of performing rituals or puja and then escape with them, the officer said.

He further confessed to committing a similar offence recently in Bhadravathi, Shivamogga district, Karnataka, the officer added.

Police said half of the stolen gold ornaments were kept at his residence in Kolar, while the rest were pledged at jewellery shops in Nagpur, Maharashtra, and BTM Layout here. PTI AMP SSK