Bhubaneswar: Odisha Special Task Force (STF) on Tuesday arrested Laxman Madhi, son of Erma Madhi of Ambaguda under Kalimela police limits in Malkanagiri district, in connection with a case of thuggery, cheating and impersonation. Earlier, the STF had arrested the masterminds of the gang named Kanhu Charan Pradhan and Kishore Mishra.
The arrested accused is a close associate of mastermind Kanhu Charan Pradhan. Huge transactions (more than Rs 60 lakh) were made in the bank account of Laxman Madhi and he also had frequent conversations with Pradhan.
The arrest is in connection with STF case No. 15/2023 registered at Koraput Town police station under Sections 419/420/465/468/470/471/34 IPC. Later, the investigation was taken over by the STF.
Several cases have been registered against the mastermind Kandhu Charan Pradhan in the past for his involvement in six similar crimes. Expensive mobile phones, forged/fake government notifications/ orders, and other incriminating documents were seized from the possession of Pradhan.
This group used to cheat/extort people claiming to be RTI activists and also fooled people by saying that they had close proximity with senior officers and could get them crusher licenses, liquor licenses, transfer/posting, etc. This group indulges in thuggery/cheating/impersonation at various places in Odisha.
It was also noticed that this group uses some mule bank accounts, including some accounts of dead persons. They trick people by saving their numbers as some senior officers. So far, the investigation revealed that transactions of more than Rs 40 crore were made in the accounts of Kanhu Pradhan and his associates.
