Bathinda police today claimed to have busted a gang that allegedly used women to lure people to hotels or secluded places before blackmailing and extorting money from them. As many as 28 persons, including 23 women, mostly from Bathinda and others from Sangrur, Moga and Ludhiana, have been arrested.The police said one of the accused had 10 cases registered against him, while around 10 of the women accused had one or two cases registered against them in the past. Some of the accused were also drug addicts, the police claimed.According to the police, the women members of the gang would approach people, particularly at night, and ask for a lift. They would then befriend the victims and allegedly take them to a hotel or an isolated place, where other members of the gang were present.The police claimed that the victims were then intimidated and their objectionable videos recorded. The gang would subsequently threaten to circulate the videos on social media and demand money from them.Inspector Yadwinder Singh, SHO of the Kotwali police station, said the police were conducting checking near the railway station on Friday when they received information that some men and women were allegedly luring people, snatching their belongings and extorting money by threatening them.Acting on the information, the police arrested the accused and registered a case under Sections 304(2), 111, 190 and 191(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.The SHO said the police were also verifying hotels being operated without proper authorisation as part of the investigation.