HAVERI: Haveri police on Wednesday arrested a 32-year-old man from a house here for allegedly making a threat call to actor Salman Khan.
The accused, Bhikharam Bishnoi, a resident of Jalore in Rajasthan, is also said to have demanded money from Khan during the phone call. Haveri police were tipped off by the Anti-Terrorism Squad of Mumbai, which is investigating the threat calls made to the actor.
A Mumbai Police team arrived in the city on Wednesday and, with the help of Haveri police, apprehended the accused. The team raided the house where Bishnoi was staying with two others.
Accused came to Haveri for work
A senior police officer said, “Bishnoi came to Haveri to work as a metal fabricator some time ago. Along with two others, he rented a house on Kumbar Street in the city.”
It is alleged that on November 4, Bishnoi made a call to the actor’s office and another to the Bandra police station in Mumbai, threatening that Khan would be shot dead, just as politician Baba Siddique had been killed in Mumbai, unless a ransom was paid.
“The accused made the two calls to landlines in Mumbai from his mobile number. Subsequently, Mumbai Police tightened security around the actor’s house. After these calls, the caller’s location was traced to Haveri. The actor has been given Y+ security after Siddique’s murder and the calls from those claiming to be members of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang,” a police officer said.