12 fake servitors held for duping devotees near Puri Jagannath Temple

Puri police arrested 12 men for impersonating Jagannath Temple servitors and extorting money from pilgrims. The accused targeted visitors from several states, with Rs 20,000 and 14 phones seized. They face multiple charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Puri: Puri police on Monday arrested 12 men for allegedly extorting money from devotees by impersonating servitors of Shree Jagannath Temple.

The accused, aged between 20 and 51, were nabbed from Badadanda (Grand Road) and Parikrama Road while duping devotees in servitor attire.

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Police said the gang had been operating for months, targeting pilgrims mainly from West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh.

In a post on X, Puri Police said they “Arrested 12 people for extorting devotees by impersonating as temple sevayats on Badadanda & Parikrama Road.” Puri.

Police have seized 14 mobile phones and Rs 20,000 cash from the fake servitors.

Police swung into action after devotees complained of being harassed by a section of servitors.

The accused were identified as Pradeep Kumar Behera (24), Balaram Badapanda (22), Mahima Prasad Baral (27), Manoranjan Sahoo (32), Jagannath Dash (36), Arjun Prusty (33), Jagannath Mishra (27), Maheswar Das (34), Santosh Rout (20), Sonu Das (23), Pradeep Kumar Tripathy (51), and Sagar Rath (23), all residents of Puri town.

They have been booked under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), police said.