Maharashtra: 5 extortionists arrested by police

Thane, Jan 28: Police have arrested five people, including a woman, for allegedly demanding Rs 50 lakh from a Badlapur-based businessman.

Among the arrested is Vijay Salve alias Vijay Narsale who, according to the police is a sharp shooter and has been involved in nefarious activities in Thane for a long time. He was wanted in connection with 14 murders, including that of a politician Sahabuddin Bhukari and underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's brother, Amin Parkar.

The businessman, Atul Rane, had lodged a complaint with the police saying he had been receiving calls, demanding the amount, since the past one month.

Acting on Mr Rane's complaint, the police traced the calls to Aurangabad and, finally, arrested Narsale from the district. The other four were arrested from Mumbai following information revealed by Narsale during interrogation.

The arrested woman, Smita Kamble, planned the gang's operations in Mumbai and Thane, police said. She is the widow of Macchua Kambli, a close aide of gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli.

Machua Kambli was killed in an encounter with the police some time back.

The other three arrested have been identified as Vikas Sevekar, Kailas Bhise, and Rahul Kalyankar.

UNI