E-Paper
Honey-trap racket busted, head constable among two held in Ludhiana
Lured men out to isolated spots, filmed them with their female accomplices and then blackmailed them for money, say police.
A head constable from Moga and his aide have been arrested for running a honey-trap racket to extort money from men.
A woman, her daughter and three other accused, who operated along with the two men, are at large.
The duo arrested has been identified as head constable Kulwant Singh of Bhodiwala village of Dharamkot and Pawan Kumar of Kokri Kalan village.
Deputy superintendent of police (DSP, Dakha) Gurbans Singh Bains said the woman would target random men and invite them to meet them at isolated locations. There, the other gang members would film the men with the women and blackmail them for money using these videos.
On September 9, they snatched Rs 13,000 and a mobile phone from one Bhagwant Singh, 31, of Narangwal using the same modus operandi. Similarly, they also tried to extort money from an elderly man on Friday.
As the police were informed, they managed to arrest two of the accused, while three escaped.
The DSP said the duo had confessed to extorting money from six men. A hunt is on for their accomplices. Their female accomplice is facing a case of drug peddling as well. Police are looking further into the criminal record of all accused.
A case under Sections 420 (cheating), 384 (extortion), 365 (kidnapping), 342 (wrongful confinement), 171 (wearing garb or carrying token used by public servant with fraudulent intent), 506 (criminal intimidation), 148 (rioting) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code has been lodged against the accused.
