Man held for making ₹15-lakh extortion call to Moga trader

Police have also recovered a country-made pistol from the accused

A man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly making an extortion call to a garment trader in Moga district’s Bagahapurana sub-division. Police have also recovered a country-made pistol from the accused, Navdeep Singh, a resident of Jhanjiyaan village in Ferozepur district.

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The police claimed that it was Navdeep who made the extortion call to the trader besides opening fire outside his shop in Bagahapurana’s Madari Market on June 10.

Superintendent of police (SP) Sewa Singh Malhi said Navdeep was arrested at a police checkpost near Panjgrain village.

“During interrogation, he confessed that he along with his two associates Magghar Singh and Babbi Singh, both residents of Barnala district, opened fire in the air and fled from the spot. Later, they called up the shop’s owner, Ajay Kumar, and threatened to kill him if he failed to pay ₹15 lakh by Thursday,” the SP said.

“They were operating on the directions of a gangster Kirpal Singh, who is lodged in Sangrur jail. Further investigation is on. Police teams are conducting raids to nab the other accused,” he added.

Earlier, a case under Section 383 (extortion), 336 (endangering life), 511 (attempting to commit offences) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the Arms Act was registered against the unidentified persons.