Key member of extortion gang nabbed

LUCKNOW : A key member of a notorious gang of UP criminals involved in extortion of businessmen in Jharkhand’s coal industry was arrested by the UP Special Task Force (STF) in Chinhat area here on Thursday, said officials. The arrested accused was identified as Abhinav Pratap Singh, 28, of Ayodhya.

STF officials said the gang was mainly operated by Aman Singh and Dharmendra Pratap Singh lodged in Dhanbad and Ranchi jails. The duo used virtual mobile numbers to demand extortion money from coal businessmen from inside the jail while Abhinav was managing the gang’s activities outside jail by carrying out attacks on their targets to create terror. The gang had wrecked havoc in Jharkhand coal industry in the past few months by executing multiple shootouts on businessmen for not paying extortion amount.

Aman and Dharmendra were residents of Ambedkarnagar and Prayagraj, respectively. Aman used to hire shooters from different districts of the state to commit shootouts in Dhanbad and Ranchi (Jharkhand), said Amitabh Yash, ADG, UP STF.

He said Aman and Dharmendra were earlier associated with slain gangster Prem Prakash Singh alias ‘Munna Bajrangi’ and now linked to Mafioso-turnedpolitician Mukhtar Ansari lodged in a Punjab jail.

The ADG said Abhinav was a relative of another jailed gangster Anil Singh Sipahi. Abhinav had over 11 criminal cases registered against him in Lucknow, Ayodhya, Mirzapur and Dhanbad (Jharkhand), he said.

THIS GANG OF UP CRIMINALS WAS INVOLVED IN EXTORTION OF BUSINESSMEN IN JHARKHAND’S COAL INDUSTRY