Astrologer arrested for cheating IT officer of gold and silver worth ₹35 lakh

The Bharathi Nagar police have arrested a conman who allegedly posed as an astrologer and cheated an Income Tax (IT) department officer of gold and silver ornaments worth about ₹35 lakh on the pretext of performing a special ritual to improve his life and career.

The accused, identified as Shekhar Subbu, 59, resident of Theni in Tamil Nadu, had allegedly fled to his hometown after committing the fraud. Acting on a tip-off, the Bharathi Nagar police traced his whereabouts and arrested him during a special operation, officials said.

The accused convinced the officer that he could predict his future by looking at his face and claimed that certain rituals needed to be performed to bring success, career growth, and prosperity in his life. Initially, Shekhar reportedly conducted a small ritual after taking about ₹30,000 from the officer.

After gaining the officer’s trust, the accused later insisted that a more elaborate ritual was necessary and asked him to bring gold and silver ornaments from his house for the ceremony. Believing his claims, the officer handed over 194 gm of gold ornaments and 1.3 kg of silver articles to Shekhar, asking him to perform the ritual and return them the next day. However, the accused allegedly fled with the valuables.

Following the complaint filed by the victim, the Bharathi Nagar police registered a case and launched an investigation. The accused was later tracked down and arrested in Tamil Nadu. The police said that the total value of the stolen ornaments is estimated to be around ₹35 lakh. Efforts are under way to recover the stolen valuables and ascertain whether the accused cheated other people using a similar modus operandi.