Rayagada: Rayagada Police arrested seven persons, including three home guards, for allegedly looting a businessman of Rs 9 lakh.
According to a complaint filed by T Uma Reddy, from Garabandha in Gajapati district, he was travelling to Rayagada from Jeypore on Monday with two friends and his driver.
Their vehicle was intercepted near Raphakona Chhak by a woman named Radhika Halwa alias Sunita, who engaged them in a discussion on providing labourers, informed Rayagada Additional SP Amulya Dhara Prakash.
A few minutes later, seven men arrived in a Bolero, some of them in police uniform. They questioned Reddy about his visit to Rayagada and asked him to meet the Rayagada SP, before Sunita forcibly pushed him into the vehicle.
The woman got down after travelling some distance, while the others assaulted Reddy and snatched Rs 9 lakh from him before abandoning him by the roadside.
Based on the businessman’s complaint, police arrested three home guards — Indramani Karkaria of Bisamkatak police station, and Tamana Praska and Dilip Garadia of Kalyansinghpur police station – along with Sunita, Hira Naik Garadia, Simanchala Majhi and Mukesh Nag.
Police have thus far recovered Rs 2.83 lakh in cash, and seized a Bolero vehicle, a motorcycle and six mobile phones from the accused.
All arrested persons have been forwarded to the court as police are on the lookout for two other individuals involved in the crime.
