The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered three cases of extortion and murder believed to be carried out by the Chhota Rajan (pictured above) gang, agency spokesperson RK Gaur told PTI on Monday. The CBI took over the investigation into the cases on Maharashtra government’s request, reported dna.

The first case of extortion was lodged in April, 1999. “It was alleged in the complaint that during the period from March 2, 1999 to April 8, 1999, the accused persons identifying themselves as Rohit, John, Ashok, etc of Chhota Rajan gang made calls to the complainant and threatened him with dire consequences to extort money to the tune of Rs 25 lakh,” said Gaur. The provisions of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act were applied in the case later, he said.

In the second extortion case that dates back to July 31, 2004, Gaur said the accused had barged into the office of the complainant in Mulund, Mumbai. They posed as members of Chota Rajan’s gang and assaulted the complainant and his employee. They also demanded money at gun point.

The murder case was registered against two unidentified persons at Tilak Nagar police station in Mumbai. On October 7, 1998, Bala Kotiyan was shot dead at Navgrah Hotel where he had gone with his friend.

Rajan, 55, is facing more than 70 criminal charges. He was arrested by the Indonesian police in Bali on October 25, 2015. After the Maharashtra government decided to hand over his dossier to the CBI on the eve of his deportation to India on November 6, 2015, reports began to surface that Rajan had spoken of a nexus between Mumbai Police officials and gangster Dawood Ibrahim, the main accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case.