Two police constables attached to the Hennur Police Station in Bengaluru were arrested on Wednesday on charges of attacking and robbing the owner of a spa and two employees.
According to reports, the constables, Sharukh Dongaragaon and Nagappa Vithal Daddi, allegedly tried extorting the owner of the spa, Swathi, and then made away with Rs 28,000 and two mobile phones. They also beat up two employees of the spa - located near Kalyanagar bus stand - who tried to stop them.
The policemen were reportedly under the influence of alcohol when the incident occurred.
“The constables went to the spa and demanded Rs 50,000. When Swathi and her staffers refused to pay, they abused and assaulted them. They stole two mobiles and Rs 28,000 cash from the staffers before fleeing,” said Ajay Hiro, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru East, told Times of India.
The policemen reportedly threatened Swathi and her staff, saying that they would book a false case against the enterprise if they failed to pay up. When Swathi argued that no illegal activity was going on in her establishment, the cops assaulted her and the staff.
The DCP added that one of the constables was in plain clothes while the other was in uniform at the time of the incident. The duo has been booked Section 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 384 (extortion) and 506 (criminal intimidation) read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code. They were produced before a magistrate and have been remanded to judicial custody.
Initially, the police claimed that the staffers had intimidated them and assaulted them, but when the Banaswadi police procured CCTV footage, the situation turned out to be otherwise.