Duo held for selling fake gold coins

Chitradurga: Police arrested two men for allegedly cheating a man by selling fake gold coins and recovered Rs 5 lakh cash along with a car used in the crime. The accused are Suresh R and Krishnappa C, both residents of Chikkabbigere village in Santebennur taluk of Davanagere district. The case was registered at Bharamasagar police station based on a complaint filed by Y Abhishekha, a resident of Davanagere. According to police, Suresh contacted Abhishekha and claimed he had found 5kg gold coins while excavating a house foundation. He allegedly offered to sell 500 grams of the coins at a competitive price. Believing the claim, Abhishekha met Suresh and Krishnappa near Lakshmisagar village on Feb 28. During the meeting, he purchased 400 coins and paid Rs 10.5 lakh. Later, Abhishekha realised the coins were fake and approached the police. Acting on the complaint, police launched an investigation and arrested the two suspects and seized the cash and the car from them. Police said investigation is on to determine if the accused were involved in similar fraud cases elsewhere.