5 more Bollywood celebrities targeted by gangster Shubham Lonkar, say cops: 'Warning to entire industry'

MUMBAI: At least five Bollywood celebrities have received extortion calls from associates of fugitive gangster Shubham Lonkar, said to be operating on behalf of the jailed Lawrence Bishnoi, police sources said. However, none of the purported victims has lodged a formal complaint.

Police, probing the incident of firing at filmmaker Rohit Shetty's bungalow early Sunday, said information gathered by them indicates that some celebrities were not keen on approaching police. With no reason emerging on why Shetty was specifically targeted, investigators believe the incident may have been intended to instil fear in the film industry.




Police sources say gangster Shubham Lonkar has made extortion calls to at least five Bollywood celebrities, though none of them is keen on filing a complaint. "What baffles us is that despite intelligence inputs suggesting multiple threat calls, no one has come forward to record a statement or file a complaint," said a senior police officer on condition of anonymity. "If people expect police to act suo motu (on its own) while withholding facts, it becomes extremely difficult."

Police officials said filmmaker Rohit Shetty himself has denied receiving threat calls. This appears to belie the social media post attributed to Lawrence Bishnoi associate Lonkar, in which he claimed responsibility for the firing and alleged that Shetty had been warned repeatedly.

Lonkar's post, written in Hindi and English, said: "Ram Ram, Jai Bajrang Bali, to all brothers. We, Shubham Lonkar, Aarzoo Bhishnoi, Hari Boxer, and Harman Shandu, take responsibility for the firing that took place today at film director Rohit Shetty's house (Shetty Tower) in Mumbai."

It said: "We messaged him many times telling him not to interfere in our work, but he didn't understand. We've given him this small trailer. If he doesn't understand our message and doesn't listen to us, then the next bullet won't be fired outside his house, but inside his bedroom, right in his chest. And this is a warning to the entire Bollywood industry: mend your ways while you still have time, otherwise, your situation will be very bad."

Multiple police teams have now been sent to several parts of the country to trace the shooter involved in the firing. Investigators believe the arrest of the gunman could help establish who ordered the attack and whether it was indeed linked to an extortion bid.

"At this stage, extortion appears to be the only plausible motive," a police officer said, while adding that other angles have not been ruled out. In the firing outside actor Salman Khan's house, the gang claimed it was seeking revenge for the killing of a blackbuck, considered sacred by the Bishnoi community.

On the other hand, standup comedian Munawar Faruqui was targeted because he allegedly hurt the community's sentiments during one of his shows.

After Baba Siddiqui's murder, the gang had alleged that he was close to Salman Khan and also had links to Dawood Ibrahim. They also claimed vengeance for the death of their associate Anuj Thapan in police custody. Thapan had been arrested for the firing on Salman Khan's house.