Dimapur, Dec 2 (PTI) A clergyman was arrested from West Bengal's Darjeeling district for allegedly duping a woman of Dimapur in Nagaland by convincing her to buy a 'mystery box' for Rs 3.5 crore that would bring her fortune, police said.

Reverend Timothy Joshi, the pastor of New Life Church Ministry in Darjeeling's Kantibhita, would lure gullible believers into various types of frauds and scams, they said.

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The victim was convinced by Joshi and his gang to buy a mystery box that would bring her fortune. She then deposited Rs 3.5 crore in various bank accounts the priest provided, in 2019 and 2020.

The initial investigation revealed that the 'mystery box' was nothing but an empty box, which was made solely to deceive the victim, police said.

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Joshi was arrested by the Dimapur Police based on the complaint filed by the woman, they said.

The accused along with his brother has been involved in many scams where the victims were mostly from Northeastern states, they 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)