Delhi Police arrest 8 for extortion call to businessman

New Delhi, Sep 29 (PTI) Police busted an extortion racket linked to a gangster operating from abroad with the arrest of eight people for allegedly firing at a property dealer’s office in Narela and demanding Rs 5 crore, an official said on Monday.

The accused include the main assailants, weapon suppliers, and financiers who executed the conspiracy on the directions of a man named Jora, who claims to be the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, he said.

Jora was communicating with his associates in India through an encrypted messaging platform and also confirmed the location of the office through photos on the app. Police traced the IP address of Jora to Western Australia, but said it could be misleading if he was using a VPN, police said A few minutes before the September 14 firing incident, in which one person was injured, the property dealer received a call from Jora demanding Rs 5 crore using an international number and threatening to show his strength, a senior police officer said.

"On September 14, two men on a stolen motorcycle allegedly opened fire outside the office of a property dealer on Main Safiyabad Road, Narela. One person was injured in the incident, and four empty cartridges were recovered from the spot. The complainant also received a call from an international number demanding Rs 5 crore, failing which he was threatened with death," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outernorth) Hareshwar Swami said.

A case under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Arms Act was registered at Narela police station, and multiple teams were formed to crack the case.

Acting on technical surveillance, CCTV footage, and local intelligence, police first arrested three assailants, identified as Dinesh, Sourav, and Hemant alias Akshay, who were hired after promising Rs 5 lakh each, on September 18.

Subsequently, five more accused, including weapon suppliers Ashish Tyagi and Vansh Malik, handler Rahul alias Pistol, and financiers Sandeep alias Sunny and Sachin, were nabbed from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana.

During interrogation, it emerged that the entire operation was planned over an encrypted messaging app on the instructions of Jora, police said. Rahul alias Pistol arranged shelter and logistics for the shooters while weapons and vehicles were supplied by Tyagi and his associates.

Police recovered the stolen bike used in the firing, a motorcycle used to deliver pistols, another stolen bike, helmets, several mobile phones, and chat records from the accused. An iPad and additional evidence linking the accused to the conspiracy were also seized.

Further investigation is underway to trace other absconding associates and identify the funding channels, police added. PTI SSJ HIG