Rajkishore Chaurasia offers sweets to his wife in Patna City on Saturday. Picture by Sachin

Patna, Sept. 8: Police have made the first breakthrough in the Rajkishore Chaurasia case by arresting a youth, three months after the trader started receiving threats.

Rohit Kumar, 22, whose cellphone was used in making the extortion call to Chaurasia, was picked up from his Sabbalpur residence late last evening. Prime accused Subodh Kumar, who is Rohit’s friend and a resident of the same area, is, however, on the run.

Pushkar Kumar, the station house officer of Chowk police station, Patna City, today said: “We have detained Prince, a middle-aged friend of Subodh, for questioning. We had been trying to trace the caller’s cellphone tower location. Subodh was a student at Chaurasia’s computer training centre till last year. A teacher at Chaurasia’s centre, whose name we cannot disclosed now, had set up his own cyber training unit. He was apparently trying to poach Chaurasia’s students. He is being questioned,” the officer said.

On June 16, Chaurasia received a letter, signed by one Deshu Bhai of the Khallas gang, claiming that Visual Computer Training Centre intended to pay a Rs 2-lakh supaari (contract) to kill the trader.

The writer demanded a one-time payment of Rs 5 lakh and Rs 10,000 every month from Chaurasia to ensure his safety and that of his two sons and brother. Deshu allegedly offered to kill Babloo of Visual Computer Training Centre if Chaurasia paid him Rs 7 lakh.

Sources said the threats could be a well-laid plan to unhinge Chaurasia so that his training centre was closed.

“Subodh apparently borrowed Rohit’s cellphone to listen to songs but used it to threat Chaurasia. Though Rohit is not directly involved in the crime, he knew why Subodh was calling up Chaurasia. We are hunting for Subodh. We suspect Prince helped Subodh in the episode,” the station house officer told The Telegraph.

A relieved Chaurasia said: “I am at peace after the arrest of one of the accused. Subodh was a student at my training centre. But he quit a year ago. My family is relieved too. I hope that things would normalise now.”