Conman flaunts 'links' with politicians, held for cheating

A 69-year-old man was arrested today for allegedly duping a person to the tune of Rs 15 lakh under the pretext of 'settling' his pending issue in Telangana government through his 'clout' with politicians and bureaucrats. "In the particular case, Kantamaneni Rajendra Prasad took Rs 15 lakh from a complainant promising him to settle his issue by saying that he is a close friend of B V Papa Rao, Advisor, Policies and Institutional Development, Telangana State," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Zone) V B Kamalasan Reddy. Explaining the modus operandi, the officer said Prasad lures the gullible persons by convincing them that he enjoys close links with the politicians and senior bureaucrats in government, and cheats them by taking huge amounts to 'settle' their issues with government. A case was registered against Prasad and investigation revealed that he cheated the complainant by misusing Papa Rao's name, Reddy said, adding Prasad's involvement in other cases is being probed.