Five men who posed as journalists and reportedly threatened and assaulted a doctor to extort money at Sathangadu, near Tiruvottiyur, were arrested on Sunday.
Police said Venkateswaralu, a doctor from Sathyamurthy Nagar, Tiruvottiyur, ran a clinic in his area. On Saturday night, the five suspects, later identified as Kasim, Ravi Kumar, Mahesh, Senthil and Ravi, allegedly arrived at his clinic in a car. Claiming that they were journalists, police said the men reportedly threatened the doctor alleging he was a quack and that they would file a complaint against him with the health department.
Police sources said the men continued threatening the doctor and demanded Rs 5,000 even after he furnished his academic certificates. They also demanded Rs 5,000 every month. The sources added that one of the men reportedly assaulted the doctor in an altercation. Following the incident, Venkateswaralu complained to Sathangadu police, who later caught the five men.
Police sources said apart from Kasim, who worked in a small magazine, the rest of them were not journalists.
Police sources added that Kasim would regularly drop off a copy of his magazine to the local police station. The doctor treated the poor for free. Following a complaint by Venkateswaralu, police registered a case under various sections of the penal code against the five suspects.