Extortion Victim or Cheat, Cops probe White Collar Crime

Arun Kumar David/TNN

Bettiah: The district Police have been deluged with a string of complaints , all blaming one Vijay Kumar, his brother Sanjay and their father Banka Mahto Viyogi of duping the complainants of about Rs two crores. Even today, a fresh FIR has been lodged against Kumar at the Town PS by one Munna Giri alleging a a cheque of Rs 8 lacs issued by Kumar has bounced, Bettiah SP Sunil Naik told the media here on Saturday while issuing details of three earlier FIRs against the alleged culprit Kumar. Many more complainants have approached the police, the SP said, adding,a pattern suggesting a serial con-operation seems to be prima-facie emerging. The FIRS lodged against Vijay Kumar at the Town Police station and Sirisiya OP came under the SPs scrutiny after he received a letter from Captain Jai Narayan Nishad , MP from Muzaffarpur, on Thursday seeking protection for Vijay Kumar hailing from Nishad samaj, an extremely backward section.The letter alleges that Vijay Kumar, a trader, is a victim of extortion by one Shamim Akhtar, brother of Most Wanted Zakir Mian. Kumar has alleged that when he, on being harassed further even after paying extortion in several instalments, went to the police station, he was abducted by Akhtar and his associates, taken to a stamp vendor and forced to sign on several blamk stamp papers. Further his cheque book was also snatched and he was further compelled to sign blank cheques. Sharing results of his probe into allegations levelled in the MPs letter, the SP said that the different FIRs against Kumar show that he had taken large amounts of

money assuring good returns from the share market. One complainant Hargun Tripathi alleges that Kumar came to his furniture shop and gave a cheque worth Rs 4 lac for buying timber but the cheque bounced. Regarding the serious allegations of criminal behaviour and extortion against Akhtar, the SP wondered, How can give and take bank transactions amount to extortion?, and added that Kumar had been advanced huge amounts through cheque payments by Akhtar for investment. Akhtar is a local Congress leader having contested the last LS poll from Valmikinagar. When local police visited Kumars home to investigate the cases, it was found locked. The MPs letter alleges that Vijay Kumar is in hiding out of fear. He need not fear but assist the police probe his allegations which so far seem concocted, the SP said, adding, Police investigations so far point towards a well planned cheating operation. Kumar seems to be seeking to save his skin by resorting to cooked up stories . The law will take its own fair course.