Jamshedpur: Two persons have been arrested here for allegedly impersonating as Maoists and demanding a hefty levy from an acquaintance of a senior JMM leader, police said today.  

The arrest was made yesterday after an FIR was registered by Lakhan Mardi, a close friend of JMM MLA Champai Soren's son Babulal, Deputy Superintendent of Police (Musaboni) Ajit Kumar Vimal said. 

Addressing a press conference here, Vimal, accompanied by the Deputy Superintendent of Police (CCR) Sudhir Kumar, said Mardi had been receiving threat calls from an unknown number on his mobile phone over the past few months.  

The caller introduced himself as Deepak Munda, a commander of a Maoist outfit, and threatened to kill Mardi and Babulal if he was not paid a levy of Rs 20 lakh. The caller had also assured the Maoist group's help to the JMM in the next elections.  

A special team of police officers laid a trap to nab the culprits near a railway crossing close to Naga bridge in East Singhbhum district. As soon as the duo arrived to collect the levy, the team nabbed them, the DSP explained.  

The two accused were identified as Laxman Marandi and Chaitan Soren, residents of adjoining Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, he said. The arrested duo has confessed to their crime, the officer said, adding that Maoist literature, three mobile phones and a sim card were recovered from them. PTI