A gang of three pseudo-naxals from Karimnagar district were caught by the police within a week of the offences that they had committed in East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts. Addressing a media conference here on Sunday, Rajahmundry Urban police district SP T. Ravikumar Murthy said that Rs.2.70 lakh was recovered from the accused Md. Rafiuddin alias Jakeer of Jagityal of Karimnagar district, his second wife Jami Unnisa Begum alias Shakeela, Tolichowk, Hyderabad, and their would-be son-in-law Md. Anwar Sharief of Musheerabad, Hyderabad.
The SP Md. Rafiuddin was having criminal record from 2008 Shakeela also had criminal record.
On December 15, the three-member gang entered Rajahmundry city in a Honda City car and selected a list of prominent people from Internet and started calling them over phone.
The main accused called a local builder by introducing himself as Sudarshan, Commander of CPI (ML) Maoist group and demanded gelatin sticks and wire and in case of his inability to provide it, the gang collected money from them. The gang left for Visakhapatnam. They again stopped on the outskirts of Rajahmundry and extorted Rs.1.40 lakh from two more people. Finally, they landed in trouble when Rafiuddin threatened the builder again on December 19 to hand over the remaining amount.