The Adilabad One Town police arrested two key accused in a cryptocurrency investment fraud involving a six-member inter-State gang on Sunday. The police seized two mobile phones and documents relating to two properties allegedly linked to accused.
The gang is suspected of having cheated around 500 people across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, with the alleged fraud estimated at about ₹10 crore, the police said.
Adilabad Superintendent of Police Akhil Mahajan said the accused allegedly lured people into investing through a Ponzi scheme and multi-level marketing network operated via a website, promising to double their investments within two years.
The arrested persons were identified as Polamarasetty Ratnaraju, 47, and Dondapati Lakshmana Rao alias Lazarus, 46, both from Andhra Pradesh, the SP said at a press conference in Adilabad on Sunday.
The case was registered following a complaint by Narsimulu of Ruyyadi village in Adilabad district, who reportedly invested ₹7.50 lakh in 2023.
He approached the police after the accused allegedly failed to return the money despite repeated requests.
Two other victims from Adilabad district reported losses of ₹7.50 lakh and ₹6.21 lakh respectively.
The police registered a case under Sections 420 and 409 of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act. Further investigation is underway.
Published – October 11, 2026 08:04 pm IST