Elderly man defrauded by impersonator claiming to be a Naga Sadhu; 2.5 tolas of gold stolen

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Two men arrived in a car, one of whom was half-naked and had smeared ash on his body.

Claiming to be a Naga Sadhu from Ujjain, he gained the trust of an elderly man and promised to double his gold. Taking advantage of the man’s trust, the fraudster stole 2.5 tolas of gold jewelry. Once the gold was in his possession, he instructed the elderly man to step back and sped away in the car. The incident occurred on 24 January between 9 and 10 am near Poddar School in Shahnurwadi. A case has been registered at Jawaharnagar Police Station. According to the complaint filed by Apparao Bembde (75, Devanagari, Shahnurwadi), he was walking from Sangramnagar underpass toward Shahnurwadi. On 24 January, near the back of Poddar School, a car stopped in front of him. Two men got out, one of them half-naked and smeared in ash, claiming to be a Naga Sadhu from Ujjain. He assured Bembde that he could double his gold and advised him to keep Rs 500 and rudraksha beads in a safe. Promising that Bembde’s money would double, he asked if he had any gold to give him for doubling. Trusting him, Bembde handed over 16 grams of a gold chain and 10 grams of a gold ring a total of 26 grams of gold. The fraudster then told Bembde to step back and got into the car, fleeing the scene. Bembde waited for 15–20 minutes, hoping the men would return, but they never did. Following this, Jawaharnagar Police registered a case. Further investigation is being conducted by assistant police inspector Atish Lohkare.