Former sarpanch cheated of ₹8 lakh after being promised ‘rice-pulling coin’ in Andhra Pradesh

The accused told the victim that the coin would fetch over ₹500 crore abroad; police arrest trio within 24 hours of receiving a complaint

A group of people who conned a villager of ₹8 lakh after promising to sell him a ‘rice-pulling coin’ were arrested by the ASR police on Thursday within 24 hours of the victim lodging a complaint.

K. Rajeswar Rao, a former sarpanch of Manyamvari Palem of Chintapalli mandal in ASR district, said in his complaint that he was approached by two men named Vanthala Poorna and Korra Prem Kumar who showed him a coin which supposedly had magical powers. The coin, bearing an image of Sita-Rama Kalyanam (the celestial wedding of Lord Rama and Goddess Sita), is made of iridium and can fetch over ₹500 crore if auctioned abroad, the culprits reportedly told Rajeswar Rao.

The accused said they needed ₹20 lakh in order to clear the formalities for auctioning the coin abroad, such as getting the coin tested by a professional valuer, and asked Rajeswar Rao to become their ‘partner’ by ‘investing’ whatever money he could. Falling for their ruse, and hoping to make a fortune, Rajeswar Rao decided to join them and promised to ‘invest’ ₹8 lakh in their project.

Before parting with the money, Rajeswar Rao told the gang that he wanted to see the coin first. The gang members agreed, and told him to come with the money to a house in a remote village in Chintapalli mandal on January 15. After an overnight stay, the gang, along with Rajeswar Rao, started for Lambasingi in a car in order to ‘get the coin tested’.

Along the way, a group of people, posing as police, intercepted the car and asked the occupants to exit the vehicle. As soon as Rajeswar Rao got out, the accused, Poorna and Prem Kumar, and their accomplice Bujji, snatched the bag containing the cash and fled after brandishing a knife at Rajeswar Rao.

“The victim approached us on January 18 and lodged a complaint. We formed a special team and put up checkposts between Lambasingi and Chintapalli. We nabbed the accused at one of the checkposts,” said K.P.S. Kishore, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Chintapalli.

“So far, we have nabbed three persons, seized ₹7,87,500 in cash and the knife wielded by the accused, as well as the coin,” Mr. Kishore said.