Thane: The Thane Crime Branch (Unit-1) arrested a 37-year-old man from Goa on April 10 for allegedly duping a woman of Rs 2.5 crore in cash and gold ornaments by claiming her family was under a deadly black magic spell that could cause fatal accidents.The accused, Manjunath Sunder Shetty alias Dikshit Baba, a resident of Udupi, Karnataka, allegedly targeted the complainant by first gaining her trust over a period of time. He then convinced her that a female colleague of her husband and father performed black magic on her household, putting all family members at risk of serious harm. To “neutralise the curse” and ensure financial prosperity for the family, Shetty purportedly coerced the victim into performing a series of expensive aghori rituals, systematically extracting large sums of money and gold ornaments. Following a complaint registered at Kasarvadavali police station, the case was transferred to the crime branch. Using mobile signal analysis, a specialised team tracked Shetty to Goa and apprehended him. He was subsequently produced before a local court, which remanded him to police custody until April 15.Preliminary investigations indicate Shetty is a habitual offender with cases pending in multiple jurisdictions. He faces charges of rape and financial embezzlement in Manickpur, Vasai, and is also accused of outraging the modesty of a woman and fraud in Vartak Nagar, Thane. “The accused specifically targets women, builds a rapport to win their confidence, and then uses fear psychosis regarding their family’s safety to extort money,” a senior crime branch official said.Shetty has been booked under BNS, along with relevant sections of the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013.
