A joint team of Army and Arunachal Pradesh Police on Saturday nabbed a member of NSCN(U), identified as Pongsa Wangpan, from Chattong village in Kanubari circle of Tirap district.

Pongsa Wangpan was apprehended on charges of extortion.

He was arrested on the basis of a case (No 13/20) related to extortion calls received by traders, shopkeepers and public leaders of Deomali area from suspected cadres of the outlawed outfit.

The Deomali police registered the case on Friday under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

A police official said a joint team carried out raids in suspected locations and during the course of the investigation, the team detected that money was transferred to the bank account of one of the callers.

Later, a special team, headed by Deomali SDPO Topha Wangsu and Longding deputy SP (Headquarters) Banghang Tangjang, arrested Wangpan from his house.

The team also recovered extorted money of Rs. 58,000 and the bank account where the extorted money was deposited and other documents.

The official said the arrested man was an active member of NSCN(U) and had been running an extortion racket in Deomali sub-division of Tirap district along with his brother and self-styled private Honkai Wangpan.

“The arrest has been a major blow for the extortion racket,” the official said, adding that the Tirap SP had supervised and coordinated the joint operation under the overall supervision of the DIG (TCL).

Damien Lepcha is Northeast Now Correspondent in Arunachal Pradesh. He can be reached at: [email protected]