The Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) arrested a 48-year-old man from Mangaluru, Karnataka, in connection with an extortion case on Thursday. The cell had been on the lookout for the accused, identified as Anant Shetty, for a long time. However, he continued to evade arrest.
In 2020, an NRI businessman had approached the Mumbai Crime Branch after he had received threat calls from fugitive gangster Vijay Shetty. According to the police, the businessman was reportedly cheated to the tune of ₹35 crore by his business partner. When he demanded his money, his partners began avoiding him. This left the businessman with no option but to approach the Dubai police.
Meanwhile, the victim started receiving calls in 2020 from gangster Vijay Shetty, who threatened him with dire consequences if he continued to demand for his money. The businessman then approached the Crime Branch and an offence of extortion and criminal conspiracy was registered at Worli police station. The investigation was then transferred to the AEC.
During investigation, it was revealed that a man from Mumbai had contacted Shetty. This is the first arrest in the case, said a crime branch officer. The accused was produced before the court, which remanded him to police custody till August 24.
