Civil defence volunteer held for extortion bid

NEW DELHI: A 37-year-old Delhi civil defence volunteer, said to be an associate of jailed gangster Jitender alias Gogi, has been arrested for allegedly attempting to extort ₹5 lakh from a businessman running a grocery store in outer Delhi’s Alipur, police said on Monday.

A countrymade pistol and two cartridges were recovered from him, they said.

Deputy commissioner of police (outer-north) Gaurav Sharma said the volunteer, Devender Kumar Verma, was arrested on Sunday following investigation into a case filed on the businessman’s complaint.

The businessman alleged that on July 29 noon, he was at his shop with four-five customers when a man arrived and gave him a white envelope. The man said a bike-borne man had asked him to hand over the envelope.

“The businessman found a letter and a route map inside. The letter said he and his family members will be killed if ₹5 lakh was not paid within 20-25 minutes at the place marked on the map. The businessman called the police,” the DCP said.

Sharma said CCTV camera footage of areas around the businessman’s shop were examined. “Our efforts led to the identification and arrest of the suspect, Devender Kumar Verma, with a pistol and two bullets,” he said.

Verma was arrested on Sunday near the Budhpur drain in outer Delhi after a tip-off, the DCP said.

Police said Verma told them he was a close aide and a local informer of Jitender alias Gogi.

The Delhi government did not respond the queries regarding Verma’s arrest.