Daijiworld Media Network-Bengaluru (RJP)

Bengaluru, Jun 18: Vijayanagar police have been interrogating an extortion accused relating to the extortion call he made recently from Parappana Agrahara Central Prison here. Police have discovered that mobile phones are used freely inside the prison and some inmates make money by charging Rs 500 to Rs 1500 per call.

Gunda alias Ravi is the accused who is being interrogated in this connection.

Ravi is the prime accused in a case for making the extortion call from the prison to a businessmen demanding Rs 30,000. Ravi also made his associates to assault the victim, vandalise his car and rob him of Rs 10,000.

Police said Ravi has confessed that he made the extortion call. He had used SIM card belonging to another inmate named Dinesh. Dinesh is an undertrial who was arrested by Byatrayanapura police for robbery.

As per details, Dinesh got the SIM card and a smart phone smuggled into the jail for Rs 10,000 from his contact outside who activated SIMs using forged documents. Dinesh used to allow other inmates to make calls using his phone by charging anywhere from Rs 500 to 1,500 per call depending on the duration.

Sources in police say there are nearly almost a hundred inmates with mobile phones who do the same business.

Investigations revealed that Gunda Ravi had used the SIM to make extortion calls to two more persons. But when the police approached them, they refused to file complaint.

Police said that all 19 mobile phone jammers installed at Parappana Agrahara are not functioning anymore as the annual maintenance contract had expired a few months ago. A device called ‘F1G security pole’ has been installed now to detect SIM cards and metal objects inside the prison. It is not known how the SIM cards are not detected by this device.

But the Prison authorities said they are not aware that SIM cards are being used inside the prison. Vijayanagar police are yet to inform them about their recent investigation on mobile phone uses inside the prison, it is gathered.