A man was arrestedfor allegedly extorting money from people by posing as aMaoist in Odisha's Malkangiri district, police said today.
Angry villagers caught the fake ultra, identified asMohan Hantal (25) of Chitrakonda area in the naxal-hitdistrict, and handed him over to police yesterday, MalkangiriSuperintendent of Police Akhilesh Singh said.
Hantal had been indulging in extortion in the area forlast couple of months besides threatening people byidentifying himself as a Maoist cadre, police said.
He was caught and handed over to the police when hedemanded money from the sarpanch of Gunthagada grampanchayat,they said.
Thorough examination of Hantal's antecedents show hewas neither a Maoist nor had any link with the red rebels,police said he tried to earn easy money by posing as a naxal.
Extortion by miscreants posing as Maoists has been onthe rise in districts like Malkangiri, Koraput and Rayagada insouthern Odisha, they said.