BANKE, April 2: Banke police arrested a man for threatening people via social media and demanding a large sum of money while impersonating an Indian gangster.
The police identified the suspect as 41-year-old Ram Bahadur Budhakshetri from Bheriganga Municipality-7, Kothaghari, Surkhet. He had been living in a rented room in Kohalpur-5, Banke.
Investigators found that he used a foreign mobile number on WhatsApp to send threats and demand ransom. He introduced himself as Indian gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi and Anmol Bishnoi while making the threats. His messages demanded INR 50 million and warned of severe consequences if the money was not paid.
Police confirmed through preliminary investigations that he sent the messages from a foreign number. They seized the mobile phone he used in the crime. Police Inspector Hari Bhattarai, the Information Officer at the Banke District Police Office, stated that further investigations are underway.
Indian authorities have kept gangster Lawrence Bishnoi in prison since 2014 on charges of extortion and murder. Investigators have accused him of orchestrating the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala (May 29, 2022), attempting to assassinate actor Salman Khan, and ordering the murder of Baba Siddiqui.
One arrested for threatening Nepali entrepreneurs in name of In...
Police report that his brother, Anmol Bishnoi, has been threatening businessmen and industrialists and demanding ransom while Lawrence remains behind bars.
Suspect previously involved in multiple crimes
Police have arrested Ram Bahadur Buda Chhetri, who has been involved in multiple crimes in the past.
On August 11, 2004, the Area Police Office in Kakarbhitta, Jhapa, accused him of luring a Nepali woman to India for trafficking and murder.
On March 22, 2006, Jhapa police arrested him for extorting money through threats.
On August 25, 2007, the Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu, detained him for kidnapping a person, holding them hostage in a taxi, and extorting ransom.
On April 9, 2008, the Area Police Office in Chhinchu, Surkhet, charged him with shooting and killing Constituent Assembly candidate Rishi Sharma in Lodhe, Surkhet.
In March 2009, police also implicated him in a case for snatching weapons during a protest led by conflict-affected former army and police personnel.
A court sentenced Ram Bahadur Buda Chhetri to five years in prison and a fine of Rs 60,000 for shooting Shakti Bahadur Basnet at Koteshwor Nikhileshwar Temple. He completed his sentence and walked free on March 12, 2014.
Buda Chhetri joined the Nepal Army in 2002 but deserted his post shortly after. Since then, police reports state that he has collaborated with various groups to engage in criminal activities instead of pursuing a profession.