CBI arrests two for demanding bribe from ex-TDP MP by posing as senior officers

The CBI has arrested two persons for allegedly demanding bribe from former TDP MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao in a bank fraud case by impersonating senior officers of the central agency and spoofing its landline number, officials said.

This is the third such case recently where people have spoofed the landline number of the agency to demand bribe from suspects in a case probed by the agency.

Y Manivardhan Reddy, a resident of Hyderabad and Selvam Ramaraj from Madurai in Tamil Nadu, were arrested by the CBI in connection with a case registered on Thursday alleging they were threatening and demanding huge amounts as bribe from former Rao, who is facing a bank fraud case with the agency, the agency FIR said.

Rao was booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a bank fraud case on December 30 last year and searches were carried out at his premises.

"In this connection, they have contacted one of the accused in a CBI case pertaining to a bank fraud, and demanded huge amounts of money in the name of senior CBI officials posted at New Delhi," CBI spokesperson Nitin Wakankar said in a statement.

Reddy allegedly met Rao on January 4 this year at Guntur and demanded bribe in the name of senior officers of the CBI at Delhi for settling the case against him, the FIR alleged.

He further threatened Rao that he would have to face serious consequences if the bribe amount is not paid and gave two days time to decide, it alleged.

"Information further revealed that Manivardhan Reddy Yala and Selvam Ramaraj have been collecting money from different people in the name of senior central government functionaries by promising favourable action in their matters through these central government functionaries," the FIR stated.

They allegedly used a malicious software to spoof the landline number 011-24302700 of the CBI Head Office in New Delhi to call an accused in a bank fraud case probed by the agency, Wakankar said.

In the calls made on his mobile number, the duo posed themselves as senior CBI officers from New Delhi and demanded bribe for getting favours in the case against him, the spokesperson said.

In the recent months, the CBI had come across two such cases where accused spoofed the phone number of the agency to call people facing probe in various cases.

In one such case, a person posed as director of the CBI to demand bribe.