Simultaneous raids were carried out by the police at 20 places and 12 persons were arrested for cheating, said deputy commissioner of police (south zone) V Satyanarayana.
"They were extorting money from innocent people by doing black magic, sorcery and witchcraft and claiming to put evil spirit in someone. We had been receiving many complaints and hence police conducted raids today," the DCP said, adding that the crackdown was continuing.