Bhubaneswar, April 16: A Cuttack-based doctor has lodged a complaint with the police alleging an extortion threat from a criminal who works for notorious don Sheikh Roman. Roman is now lodged in Jharpada jail.

In his complaint submitted at Capital Police Station yesterday evening, Satyanarayan Samal, a dentist who practises both in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, said that Deepak Dwibedy, an associate of Roman, called him on his mobile phone and demanded Rs 10 lakh.

Roman is serving time in Jharpada jail in connection with the sensational Sheikh Chunna murder case of 2005.

The money was demanded in the name of Roman, who was re-arrested 10 days ago from Saheed Nagar on charges of trying to collect extortion money from people while out on parole. Five others along with Deepak had also been arrested on the same charges. However, Deepak was released on bail after a few days.

“Deepak said he was making the call on behalf of Sheikh Roman. He threatened to eliminate my family if I refused to pay. He also told me to visit Jharpada jail and meet Roman,” said the dentist who was in Bapuji Nagar when the gangster called.

Samal said he had received such calls earlier as well but never taken them seriously. However, now he also plans to lodge a complaint with the Chauliaganj police in Cuttack.

The police said Roman was a member of the Hyder gang and was serving a life term in Jharapada jail after he was convicted last year in the Sheikh Chuna murder case.

The doctor said that in the earlier threat calls, the callers used to demand money and threaten to kidnap him. Sometimes they said he would be kidnapped like Balangir-based businessman Rashmi Ranjan Mohapatra, who was abducted in 2007 by dreaded gangster Sheikh Hyder. Rashmi Ranjan was later killed by his kidnappers. His body was found at a deserted place in Jharkhand.

The doctor, who has in his clinic in Cuttack and also work for several private hospitals here, said he could not figure out why he was being targeted by the gangsters. “I am not all that rich,” he said.

This is not the first instance of criminals operating from behind the bars. On March 27 last year, the city police had arrested a suspended police constable for extorting money on behalf of gangster Hyder, who is lodged in Jharpada jail.

The Jharpada jail authorities said these incidents had occurred outside the jail and had no connection whatsoever with those lodged in the prison.

“If anyone commits a crime after going out of jail on bail or parole, the jail officials are not responsible for it. If we get a police complaint about a person committing crime while out on parole, we will not grant him parole again,” said a jail official.