A former security guard was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly duping unemployed youths to the tune of several lakhs on the pretext of recruiting them as home guards by posing as an official of the Andhra Pradesh chief minister's security, Cyberabad police said.

Besides Nagendra Prasad, two others, including police constable Y Madhu and a woman identified only as Anitha, were also apprehended by police. Nagendra Prasad posed himself as a Reserve Inspector, working in chief minister's security to lure unemployed youths and collected huge amounts on the pretext of getting them appointed as home guards.

He took assistance of police constable Y Madhu, said Cyberabad Police Commissioner C V Anand. Prasad was arrested twice in the past for the similar offence of cheating youths by promising them jobs in various state government departments, he said. The police commissioner said that Prasad got acquainted with Madhu and convinced him to lure youths for Rs one lakh by claiming that he had good contacts in DGP office. Madhu procured about 40 candidates through his known sources from Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Eluru areas and collected amount of Rs 40 lakh, Anand said. Prasad gave the candidates application forms and medical fitness forms through the police constable and kept the matter dragging over appointment orders. Whenever Madhu insisted, Prasad used to get Madhu speak to another accused Anitha, apparently his acquaintance, who would pose as a staffer in the Home Guard's office. Finally, Prasad prepared fake appointment orders making them look like the ones issued by the Commandant, Home Guards, Hyderabad and handed them over to the candidates.

The victims realised that they were cheated when they approached the concerned office with the orders, Anand said. Police uniforms, a fake police identity card, and as many as 27 fake appointment orders of Home Guards were recovered from possession of Prasad among other things, the Cyberabad police chief said.