Bhubaneswar, July 9: Deogarh police have arrested four Naxal “sympathisers”, including the son of one of the victims, for their involvement in the murder of three villagers in Deogarh district on June 21.

The police yesterday arrested four sympathisers from Ranigola and Jharpur villages — Mukunda Nayak, Sapan Nayak, Vimal Toppo and Santosh Munda — for their alleged involvement in the killing. Incidentally, Mukunda happens to be the younger son of Bhubaneswar Nayak, a petty contractor who was killed by the Maoists on June 21.

Police said Mukunda had fallen out with his father over some roadwork contract, which he was interested in. After Bhubaneswar bagged the contract, the Maoists had “warned” him alleging that his for construction was “poor”. “Later Mukunda turned a sympathiser and is believed to have a hand in the killing,” said deputy inspector-general of the north central range Arun Sarangi. Sarangi added the arrested persons are suspected to be hardcore sympathisers who provided Naxalites courier services, food and shelter. “Some red literature has also been recovered from them,” he added. The arrested were produced before the Deogarh local court which rejected their bail petitions and sent them to jail custody.

Naxalites killed three villagers on suspicion of being police informants in two remote villages of Deogarh district on June 21 night.