The Mahalakshmi Layout police unearthed an extortion racket and arrested six gang members, led by a rowdy-sheeter, who were running operations under the cover of an online news channel.
The racket came to light a few days ago when the accused abducted two employees of Sai Food Pvt. Ltd. and blackmailed the proprietor. He threatened to publish a story claiming that the owner was selling expired food products, unless he was paid ₹20 lakh. “The accused also said the employees would be released once he got the money,” said the police.
Srinivas approached the police, who accompanied him in plain clothes when he went to pay the ransom.
While five people were arrested, the kingpin, Ramesh, managed to escape. The police tracked him down to Tamil Nadu and arrested him on Wednesday. The other accused are Santosh, Vivek, Harish, Aravind, and Durgesh.
The accused allegedly confessed that they had been running the racket for many months targeting small-scale and cottage industries.
