Coimbatore:
The Coimbatore Rural Police have arrested V. Sekar (41), a “self-styled
priest” on charges of duping women into handing over their property,
including jewellery, to him by promising them that he would alleviate
their sufferings.
The priest
used to make women believe him that he would alleviate their sufferings
by soothsaying and by conducting special poojas and prayers.
It is
learnt that the man was known as “pan priest” since he used to consume
close to 30 packets of pan items a day.
The police
had registered a case against the priest under five sections of the
Indian Penal Code (IPC) on charges of forgery, criminal intimidation
and cheating based on a complaint from a widow Shanmugasundari (34)
of Thudialur.
The complainant
had stated that the priest by promising to alleviate her sufferings
duped her of her 18 sovereigns of jewellery and 84 cents at Uthukuzhi.
The jewellery
were taken for the “goddess” and the land was registered in the
name of a charitable trust purportedly run by the man, the complainant
said.
When she
asked him to return the land and jewellery, he threatened to finish
her off.
The man
had been lodged at the Coimbatore Central Prison. Ten sovereigns of
jewellery had been recovered, the police said.
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