Bhubaneswar, Sept. 21: Police arrested a 49-year-old woman for allegedly running a sex racket here. The cops are looking for 15 girls who are also involved in the racket.
The racket came to light when a 23-year-old woman lodged a complaint that her husband had forced her into prostitution. Acting on it, the police arrested Reena Behera, the mastermind. The complainant’s husband, Prashant Sahu, 30, is said to be her main associate. Sahu is absconding.
The police said Behera was arrested from a rented house at Nayapalli. The woman had nearly 15 girls, mostly from the city and its outskirts, on her payroll. She used to hire houses in the city for short periods and operate from there. The girls used to be in touch with her over telephone and came over when needed.
Prashant Sahu, police sources said, used to act as a pimp and solicit customers. It is alleged that these girls used to visit various hotels in Puri, Nayagarh and Balasore. The police have identified houses in posh colonies such as Nayapalli, Chandrasekharpur and Patia from where the accused operated. They used to charge between Rs 2,000 and Rs 2,500 for a night.
“We will be conducting raids to apprehend the persons named by Reena,” said a police official.
Attackers at large
Police are yet to trace the goons who attacked a lawyer and his relative near Press Chhak in Cuttack last night.
Two persons on a motorcycle had lobbed two crude bombs at Bhat and his brother-in-law Sukant Pal near Kathajodi bridge and escaped from the spot.
The car was damaged in the explosion and the two suffered multiple injuries. The two victims, Abhaya and Sukant, were immediately rushed to SCB hospital.
“Both the patients have multiple injuries on the face, chest and shoulders. Bhat has been admitted to the ICU,” said an SCB doctor.