Inter-district extortion gang busted, 6 nabbed
The Jalandhar Rural police have dismantled an inter-district extortion racket with the arrest of six persons involving in blackmailing and extorting money from innocent people.
The arrested accused have been identified as Jobanpreet Singh of Channanwindi, Rajesh Kumar, alias Sunny, of Dhandowal, Jaskaran Gill, alias Jassa, of Saidpur Jhri, Barjesh Kumar, alias Meshi, of Sandhawal, Buta Singh, alias Buta, of Balmik Mohalla Talwan, and Barkha of Mehrajwala. The accused had been operating across several districts, targeting people involved in scams.
Speaking to mediapersons, Senior Superintendent of Police, Jalandhar Rural, Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh, said the arrests were made following a coordinated operation led by SHO, Shahkot Police Station, under the supervision of DSP Onkar Singh Brar and SP, investigation, Jagroop Kaur Bath.
The operation was initiated after a complaint from Narinder Singh, a 65-year-old shopkeeper from Sultanpur Lodhi. Narinder Singh was reportedly being lured to a location in Saidpur Jhri on the pretext of providing labour for his business, only to be victimised by the gang.
They accused him of a false crime, assaulted him and demanded Rs 5 lakh, threatening to ruin his reputation with fabricated charges. They forcibly took Rs 15,000, multiple ATM cards, and made video recordings of the assault to intensify their threats.
The gang’s modus operandi was to lure victims to isolated locations, fabricating false criminal accusations and then extorting money through intimidation and blackmail. Police investigations revealed that the group had been operating across district lines, exploiting their victims using similar tactics. After raiding multiple locations, police were able to apprehend the six members of this inter-district gang.
A case was registered at Shahkot police station on October 5 under various sections, including extortion, assault and criminal conspiracy. Further investigation revealed that the gang had extorted significant amounts from other victims across districts, using the same modus operandi.
The accused will be produced in a local court, where the police will seek their remand for further interrogation. Police teams are working to identify additional victims and gather more evidence of the gang’s activities across different regions.
