HT Correspondent
DIBRUGARH, Sept 1: In a coordinated operation involving the Tirap district police and Darjeeling police, an extortionist claiming to be an NSCN (K-YA) cadre using the name Rocky Thapa has been apprehended in Sukhna, West Bengal.
Over the past few months, Tirap district police had been receiving reports of a series of extortion attempts originating from two recurring phone numbers. The caller identified himself as SS Capt Rocky Thapa, claiming affiliation with NSCN (K-YA). The extortion demands ranged from seeking assistance from political leaders ahead of elections to requesting rice bags for NSCN (K-YA) party members in Tirap.
In response to these extortion attempts, a fresh suo-motu case was registered under FIR No. 14/2023 U/S 384/506 IPC R/W 10/13 UAP Act at PS Khonsa on August 30, 2023.
Following a thorough investigation, the individual responsible for the extortion attempts was traced to Sukhna, near Darjeeling, West Bengal. The accused, whose real name is Karim Khan, had been using the alias Rocky Thapa for his illegal activities. Khan is originally from Khonsa, Arunachal Pradesh, but currently resides in Lalpahar Tipong Gaon, Tinsukia district.
The police have recovered the mobile phone and SIM cards used in the extortion, as well as bank account details and a passbook.
It was revealed that the accused, a former resident of Khonsa town, had a criminal record with involvement in five cases. He exploited the name of Rocky, someone he encountered while incarcerated at Khonsa Jail in 2020. Since his release in April 2021, he had been using Rocky’s identity for extortion, admitting to extorting more than Rs 2 lakh. Further investigation into the case is ongoing.
The Tirap police team was led by DySP Togum Gonggo and sub-inspector Sheychin Chena, with strong support from Darjeeling police, coordinated by Tirap SP Rahul Gupta. This case exemplifies effective inter-state police coordination.
