Samastipur, April 2: Five persons, including a woman, were arrested last night from Azad Nagar area in Samastipur for allegedly running a sex racket. Two women were rescued.

Acting on a tip-off, a police team, led by the station house officer of Mufassil police station Sanjay Kumar Jha, raided the residence of Pankaj Mahato at Azad Nagar. Seven persons, including Umesh Prasad Singh, a professor of English at a college in the district, and three women, were detained. Two women, found to be the victims of the racket’s kingpin, were released later.

Besides Singh and Mahato, the two other men arrested were Tuntun Mahato, a resident of Punas village under Pusa police station, and Shankar Singh, a resident of Najirganj.

Deputy superintendent of police Rajiv Ranjan told The Telegraph: “Five persons — four men and a woman — were arrested and forwarded to jail. The two other women (in their twenties) taken into custody were produced in the court, where they were found to be victims of the racket. They have been released.”

He added: “Only one woman, who was involved in the racket, was arrested. She has been forwarded to jail on Monday.”

Sources said: “Sheela Devi, 50, used to persuade educationally and economically backward girls and lure them into the flesh trade. The illegal activities were being carried out at the residence of Pankaj Mahato with his consent. Mahato trapped the customers.”

The principal of the college, where Singh is a teacher, said: “Around 2pm today, I learnt that Singh was arrested in connection with a sex racket. Singh has not informed the college about the incident, but he has not come to the college today. I have reported the matter to Lalit Narayan Mithila University authorities.”