Two pseudo naxals held in Hyderabad extortion plot

Police officials presenting the accused before the media in Hyderabad.

The Jeedimetla police arrested two men who attempted to extort ₹50 lakh from a businessman by posing as naxalites on Wednesday.

The accused, both natives of Gannavaram in Andhra Pradesh, were picked up from the Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) forest area in the early hours, and 13 country-made bombs, a threatening letter, and four mobile phones were seized from them.

The accused were identified as Yerramsetty Raju, 33, and Kandurelli Raju, 24, currently residing in Shapur Nagar on the outskirts of the city.

The case came to light on May 22, when the complainant, Kuna Raghavender Goud, approached the police after his father, Ravinder Goud, discovered that the Tulasi plant in front of their home had been damaged and a red-coloured towel and letter were placed on their car. The letter, written in Telugu and signed under the name of a naxalite group, demanded ₹50 lakh and threatened them with dire consequences if the demands were not met.

Search teams were formed who analysed footage from over 500 CCTV cameras to trace the perpeterators. Following their arrest, they confessed to the crime, revealing that financial distress had driven them to orchestrate the extortion attempt.

Investigation revealed that Yerramsetty Raju, who has a previous record of property-related offences at Gannavaram police station, had recently lost his job at a private company. Along with his associate, Kandurelli Raju, he devised the plan to target affluent individuals in Shapur Nagar, in the hope of securing quick money through fear tactics.

When the initial threat failed to elicit a response, the two travelled to Vizianagaram, where they reportedly assembled improvised explosive device (IED) in a bid to escalate their intimidation. They returned to Hyderabad with the intention of planting and detonating a bomb to compel compliance from the victim. Their plan however was foiled before any harm could occur.

Published - May 28, 2025 08:36 pm IST