Delhi Police arrested 8 men for attempting to induce 2.5 crore from a businessman (Representational)
The Delhi Police has arrested eight persons, including two from Tihar Jail, for allegedly trying to extort Rs 2.5 crore from a businessman in Rajender Nagar, it said on Monday.
One of the accused, Amit Shukla , 42, was convicted in the 2008 murder case of television journalist Soumya Vishwanathan while his associate Naveen Dabas (30), convicted in other cases, were arrested in Tihar after obtaining permission from a city court, the police said.
Varun Vashisht, 23, Lakhan Verma, 28, Sushil, 27, Nitesh Phore, 25, Ankit, 23, all members of the Neeraj Bawana gang, were also arrested, along with Abhay Arora, 27, a former business partner of the victim, according to the police.
The matter was reported to the police on February 23, when two boys arrived at the victim's house and opened fire, in which the latter and his 12-year-old nephew were injured.
In his complaint, the victim stated that he had received WhatsApp calls from unknown numbers demanding Rs 2.5 crore. The caller told him that he was a notorious criminal and if the said amount was not paid, the victim will face bullets.
Despite many such calls, he had taken the matter lightly and not informed the police, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Sanjay Bhatia said.