Gangster Bishnoi ran extortion racket from Faridkot jail: Mohali police

The targets of the extortion racket were prominent singers, arhtiyas (commission agents) and business men and the money was used to purchase weapons and arrange hideouts.

Interrogation of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, brought to Mohali for questioning from Faridkot jail on Wednesday, has revealed that the gang used to make extortion calls from inside the jail as well, the Mohali police have claimed.

Lawrence Bishnoi was brought to Mohali after the district police nabbed members of his gang from Dwarka in Delhi.(HT File)

Faridkot police had arrested him on March 5, 2015 with foreign weapons in his possession. He is in Mohali police custody till December 1 (Friday).

The targets of the extortion racket were prominent singers, arhtiyas (commission agents) and business men and the money was used to purchase weapons and arrange hideouts.

Bishnoi was brought to Mohali after the district police nabbed members of his gang from Dwarka in Delhi, in collaboration with the police there. Bishnoi made the extortion calls himself, proving that he has access to mobile phones in jail, a police official said.

In fact on November 27, police recovered a microphone from Bishnoi in Faridkot jail.

“We have the names of singers, commission agents and businessmen to whom extortion calls were made, but we would not reveal any name at this stage because it could hamper our investigation at this stage,” said a police official.

Now, the police investigation is concentrating on how are phones able to make it to gangsters in jails. Senior police officials have been directed to re-check various jails to recover mobiles from dreaded criminals.

From Delhi, the local police had brought one Naresh Kumar and Sunil for questioning and joint interrogation with Bishnoi. On a tip-off from them, a pistol and a revolver have been recovered.

Police said that a gangster Deepak Kumar, who had escaped during the Dwarka shoot out, had contacted Sampat Nehra, a close aide of Bishnoi. Following which, a call was made to Bishnoi seeking his help to find a hideout. 

Police also claim that there was a plan to free gang members lodged in jails in the region.