Bengaluru realtor alleges threat calls from fugitive gangster

Bengaluru: A 54-year-old city-based realtor has filed a complaint with the Central Crime Branch (CCB) police alleging that he has been receiving extortion calls from someone claiming to be fugitive underworld operative Vicky Shetty.Complainant GK Shankar from Vidyaranyapura said he first got a WhatsApp call on the morning of April 21, with the caller claiming to be Shetty and demanding money. “You are Shankar, right? You have to send me money and if you don’t, you will die during your son’s wedding in May,” the caller allegedly said in Kannada before disconnecting the call.According to Shankar, he first ignored the call. However, more calls arrived from the same person, who reiterated the threat.

“As a precautionary measure, I had switched off my mobile phone for a few days in the first two weeks of May. Now, I'm mentally disturbed and shocked by the calls,” Shankar stated in his complaint.Police said they are tracking the WhatsApp calls made to the realtor.Who is Vicky Shetty?Also known as Vijay Shetty and Bhaskar Shetty, the gangster, originally from Mangaluru and now thought to be living abroad, is known for using VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) calls to threaten targets and orchestrate crimes. Facing more than a dozen criminal cases, Shetty was originally associated with gangster Chhota Rajan and later, with Ravi Pujari. In 2010, he became an independent don.