Hyderabad: Eleven people were allegedly cheated of around ₹1 crore by a gang promising to find hidden treasure buried beneath their houses. The accused reportedly used fake gold coins, coal and religious rituals to convince victims that valuable treasure was hidden on their properties.
The Commissioner’s Task Force, Shamshabad zone, along with Rajendranagar police, arrested four persons in connection with the alleged fraud. The accused were identified as Mohd Munawar, Syed Ali Ashraf, Mohd Haji and Mohd Salman.
Hidden treasure fraud gang used fake gold coins and coal
According to police, Munawar allegedly planned the scheme to make easy money and recruited his associates. The gang reportedly approached residents claiming they had special knowledge to locate hidden treasure buried under residential properties.
The accused allegedly convinced victims to allow them to dig pits inside their premises. They then planted sacks containing coal and duplicate gold-coated coins inside the pits.
The gang reportedly told the victims that the coal would gradually transform into gold. After gaining their trust, the accused allegedly collected money from them and left the premises.
Police said the gang targeted multiple people across Hyderabad using the same method. Eleven victims were allegedly cheated of nearly ₹1 crore in total.
During the operation, police seized two cars, an autorickshaw and two motorcycles. They also recovered four mobile phones, 25 fake gold coins, 6 kg of coal, 4 kg of soil and pooja material.
A case has been registered at the Rajendranagar police station under Sections 318(4), 351(2) and 61(2), read with Section 3(5), of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Police are investigating the alleged hidden treasure fraud and examining whether more people were involved in the racket.
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