On Tuesday, October 8, the Commissioners Task Force North (Zone) collaborated with Mahankali Police to arrest three individuals involved in a rice pulling scam, seizing Rs25 lakh in cash during the operation. Rice pulling is a fraudulent scheme in which scammers sell devices made from copper-iridium, falsely claiming they can attract rice or bring wealth.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Pagidimarry Shiva Santhosh Kumar, 44, a resident of Old Alwal, Secunderabad; Gulluru Manjunath Reddy, 38, from Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh; and Pratap, 44, a native of Bangalore.
The trio intended to deceive victims by asserting that a copper vessel they possessed had magical properties that could double their money. They marketed the vessel through a company called “Appreches and Research.” In one encounter, Shiva met a complainant at a restaurant, presenting himself as an employee of the company.
The accused claimed that the vessel’s quality could only be verified using a special ‘Scanner’ available at DRDO, which required a payment of Rs25 lakh. Pratap was introduced as a scientist associated with this process.
On October 6, the complainant paid the amount; however, the accused began making excuses to delay the scanning, eventually demanding an additional Rs23 lakh to start the business. Following the complaint, police launched an investigation that led to the arrests. The accused have been charged under sections 316(2), 318(4) BNS R/w 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanahita.