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Gadag: The name ‘Dandupalya’ still sends a shiver down the spine of many. The notorious gang was known for theft, robbery, rape and murder of women in a very gory manner. A similar gang is now arrested by the Gadag police.

A group of miscreants, who had built a gang resembling the ‘Dandupalya’ gang, were reportedly moving around In the city with cutting tools and selling the same. They were involved in threatening lonely old-aged people and looting valuables including gold, silver, money and others.

The gang is known for similar murders of elderly women named Vimalabai and Saroja on February 4 and May 23, 2017, respectively. They had looted gold ornaments from the victims.

They were also involved in theft cases in Gadag, Hubballi, Davangere and 10 areas.

The gang comprises eight members including a woman and a speech impaired person. Currently, six have been arrested.

The arrested are Shankarappa, Chandrappa and Umesh from Annigeri of Dharwad district, and Maruthi, Mannappa, and Mohan from Hubballi’s Settlement area.

In a revelation from a recent police investigation, it is said that Maruthi had hit the old-aged women on their head and murdered them.

This gang resembles the “Dandupalya” gang due to a speech impaired and a woman gangmate.

The search for other two gang members Basamma and Suresh is on.