Hyderabad, Jul 5 (PTI) An interstate gang of "fake babas", which allegedly cheated public under the guise of black magic and collected huge amounts through hawala was apprehended here, police said on Tuesday.

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The accused -- four fake babas and three hawala operators -- belonging to Sirohi district of Rajasthan were arrested for allegedly duping a businessman here of Rs 37.71 lakh, Rachakonda Police Commissioner Mahesh M Bhagwat said.

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The accused persons used to move in localities disguised as babas/sadhus in search of people with mental disabilities, police said.

The accused were misleading people of having some 'doshaas' such as sarpadosham, nagadosham, etc., and in the name of performing occult rituals collected money through hawala after frightening them about threats to their life, police said.

The persons were arrested based on a complaint by a 53-year-old businessman, they said.

The complainant while returning to his home in November 2020 sustained injuries when he fell down from his motorcycle after losing balance as a snake came across his vehicle, Rachakonda Police said in a release.

In December 2020, two fake babas sought alms at the office where the complainant worked and enquired about the cause of injuries as the man narrated the incident.

The accused told him that he has sarpadosha and to come out of it they have to perform a puja. The victim believed them and paid Rs 41,000, police said.

The duo along with other fake babas performed a puja at his house and collected a total of Rs 37.71 lakh from him till February 2022 on pretext of performing some rituals saying his life will be in threat.

The accused used to speak to the victim over phone and made him to deposit cash with the hawala agents who in turn transferred the money to the fake babas through other hawala agents, police said.

Efforts are on nab some more accused in connection with the case, police added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)