Priest dupes Nagaland woman into buying Rs 3.5 cr 'mystery box'; held

Reverend Timothy Joshi, the pastor of New Life Church Ministry in Darjeeling's Kantibhita, would lure gullible believers into various types of frauds and scams, police said.

Dimapur: A clergyman was arrested from West Bengal's Darjeeling district for allegedly duping a woman of Dimapur in Nagaland by convincing her to buy a 'mystery box' for Rs 3.5 crore that would bring her fortune, police said on Sunday.

Reverend Timothy Joshi, the pastor of New Life Church Ministry in Darjeeling's Kantibhita, would lure gullible believers into various types of frauds and scams, they said.

The victim was convinced by Joshi and his gang to buy a mystery box that would bring her fortune. She then deposited Rs 3.5 crore in various bank accounts the priest provided, in 2019 and 2020.

The initial investigation revealed that the 'mystery box' was nothing but an empty box, which was made solely to deceive the victim, police said.

Joshi was arrested by the Dimapur Police based on the complaint filed by the woman, they said.

The accused along with his brother has been involved in many scams where the victims were mostly from Northeastern states, they added.