Pathankot bizman gets ₹1-cr extortion call, accused turns out to be his nephew

According to Pathankot police, during preliminary interrogation, the accused said he was aware of his uncle’s wealth and hence, hatched a plan to extort money from him.

An out-of-the-blue extortion call for a whopping ₹1 crore recently left a 70-year-old businessman from Pathankot petrified, until he had an inkling that it could be an inside job and alerted the police.

The bizman complained to the Pathankot police that a man had been calling him from an unknown number, asking for ₹1 crore and threatening him of dire consequences if he didn’t pay up. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Not long later, using technical analysis and digital footprints, police traced the caller, who turned out to be complainant Ram Lal’s nephew Dhurav, son of his brother Amit Aggarwal, and arrested him on Saturday.

A resident of New Garden Colony, Manwal Bhag, Ram Lal runs a fabric business, said police.

Giving details, Pathankot senior superintendent of police (SSP) HarkamalPreet Singh Khakh said police received a written complaint from Ram Lal, alleging that a man had been calling him from an unknown number, asking for ₹1 crore and threatening him of dire consequences if he didn’t pay up. The complainant also claimed that it could be someone from his extended family.

Following the complaint, a case was registered under Section 387 (putting person in fear of death or of grievous hurt, in order to commit extortion) of the Indian Penal Code at the Shahpurkandi police station in Pathankot, the SSP said.

According to police, during preliminary interrogation, the accused, who lives near Khanpur Telephone Exchange, said he was aware of his uncle’s wealth and hence, hatched a plan to extort money from him.