‘Baba’ arrested in Visakhapatnam for Rs 28 lakh-worth scams

Engaging in spiritual ‘scams’, seven individuals were caught and arrested for cheating four people of Rs 28 lakh in Anandapuram in Visakhapatnam. The main accused in the case was Paidipati Venkata Bhargav Raghava, 35, who went by the name Yogendra Baba. He would persuade people to engage in religious rituals in exchange for a golden locket and scam them. In one such case, a victim from Banupallivari Kalal called Appala Raju was scammed and filed a complaint with the police, leading to the discovery of the spiritual frauds.

Appala Raju had met Yogendra Babu about two months ago and agreed to perform the ritual in hopes of receiving the golden locket. Despite not having the amount required, Appala Raju took the help of his friends to gather funds for the ceremony.

Meanwhile, Yogendra Babu and his associates rented a house in Anandapuram and prematurely buried stone-filled containers that the victim would later ‘find miraculously.’ The stones buried were known as Lanka Bindas in a local temple. However, the accused apparently demanded more money from the victims to perform the other ceremonies, responding with threats when refused.

Upon finding the suspects performing spiritual scams, the Visakhapatnam police recovered mobile phones, brass lockets, gold-plated coins, sprays, a car, and Rs 1.75 lakh in cash.

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