The Basaveshwarnagar police have arrested the father of Rahul Tonse, a businessman allegedly involved in the infamous sandalwood drugs case, for allegedly cheating a city-based businessman of ₹25 crore offering investments in casinos.
The accused, Ramakrishna Rao, has been named as the prime accused in the case. His son Rahul and other family members are on the run and efforts are on to track them down. The others named in the FIR are Rao’s wife Rajeshwari, daughter Raksha Tonse and son-in-law Chetan Narayan.
The police have booked the case under Sections 316(2) (criminal breach of trust), 318(4) (cheating) of the BNS and under Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act.
According to the complainant, Vivek P. Hegde from Basaveshwarnagar, the cheating occurred between February 2023 and February 2025. Mr. Hegde told the police that Rao conspired with Rahul and Raksha and cheated him and his friends of ₹25.5 crore.
The accused allegedly lured Mr. Hedge to invest in casinos owned by them in Sri Lanka promising high returns. The complainant visited Sri Lanka to check the business, and borrowed money from relatives and friends and invested it.
The fraud came to light when Mr. Hedge did not receive any returns as promised and he was allegedly threatened when he asked the accused.
