07-07-2025
3 online fraudsters arrested for swindling pharmacist
Haveri: The CEN police in Haveri apprehended three individuals for allegedly swindling a pharmacist by impersonating as astrologers.
The arrested persons are Ramesh Shatri and Gopal Shatri from Devaragudi village in Sindhanur taluk of Raichur district, while the third suspect's name remains undisclosed due to being a minor.
Guru Shatri remains at large. The police recovered 227 gms of gold valued at Rs 21 lakh from the arrested individuals, as confirmed by SR Ganachari, CPI of CEN police station.
A 23-year-old pharmacist in Haveri became a victim of a sophisticated cyber fraud, resulting in the loss of gold ornaments worth Rs 15 lakh. The victim, a BPharma graduate employed at a private hospital in Haveri, was duped by individuals pretending to be astrologers.
The incident was reported to the CEN police station in Haveri.
The victim came across an advertisement for the Astrotalk mobile application on Instagram that offered astrological consultations. She initiated contact with the suspects through the application and communicated via text messages. After receiving online payment, the fraudsters dispatched a 'yantra', kumkuma, and other items to her.
Later, the primary suspect contacted the victim, claiming she would face serious difficulties due to issues in her kundali. When she requested assistance, the suspect recommended a special puja at their ashrama in Mysuru. He directed her to provide all her gold ornaments for the ceremony and organised his associates to collect them in Haveri.
