This Article is From Jul 01, 2012

Sacked cop held on cheating and extortion charges

A dismissed police constable, notorious for allegedly threatening government officials, including some Ministers, posing as Lokayukta Superintendent of Police and demanding money from them, has been arrested.

Based on a complaint, Lokayukta Police registered a case and traced Muruguppa Ningappa Kumbar in Belgaum district on Friday and handed him over to the city Police who registered a case for various offences under IPC including cheating, police said.

On December 26 last, Market Development Project Executive Engineer Gopal made a complaint to the Lokayukta Police stating that he had received calls from a person who claimed to be a Lokayukta SP and demanded Rs 50,000 failing which he would send him to jail by lodging an FIR against him.

Lokayukta police said many cases had been filed against Kumbar for threatening government employees for money. In one such case, he was imprisoned in Hindalaga Prison in Belgaum in the past.

The accused allegedly used to call government officials and threaten them that raids would be conducted against them if they did not pay the money demanded by him, Lokayukta police said.

Kumbar had allegedly also threatened PWD Minister C M Udasi and Water Resources Minister Basavaraj Bommai, the Lokayukta police said without elaborating.

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