Unemployed man called wife’s former employer for ₹5 crore extortion in gangster’s name

Gurugram: A man, who was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly making a phone call to a Gurugram-based exporter and demanding ₹5 crore in the name of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, was actually an unemployed man who wanted to make some easy money, police said on Wednesday.

Police said earlier, the suspect’s wife worked for the businessman, and so, the couple had necessary information about the victim, along with his cellphone number. Police said the exporter, who is a resident of Delhi, runs a manufacturing factory for bags in Gurugram, and exports the goods to different countries.

According to investigators, the suspect was arrested from Gurugram on Tuesday, and was produced before a city court and sent to police remand on Wednesday.

Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said that the suspect had allegedly arranged a countrymade breach-load pistol and ammunition to open fire at the businessman’s office or residence to terrorise him. Sangwan further said that the suspect has no criminal records, and an investigation is underway.

The suspect — a native of Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar — had moved to Basai enclave in Gurugram in XXX, said investigators. “He quit his job, and has been unemployed for the past four months. His wife barely earns ₹12,000,” an investigator said, requesting anonymity. After repeatedly hearing the gangster’s name in new reports and on social media, the suspect cooked up a plan to export money from the businessman, he added.

This was the second such incident in Gurugram, said police. On June 3, a 20-year-old man was arrested for allegedly making a threat call to a school owner in Farrukhnagar in the name of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.