A businessman’s 19-year-old son was kidnapped at gunpoint from near his house in west Delhi’s Hari Nagar for Rs 10 crore ransom last month. He was released after payment of Rs 80 lakh ransom, and police have now arrested four abductors, including a BTech degree holder.
Police said Manish was returning home in the early hours of December 30 after attending a party at a five star hotel when he was waylaid and abducted. The miscreants also took away his BMW GT car, which was later found abandoned in Dwarka.
Soon after the abduction, Manish’s father started receiving ransom calls from his cellphone demanding Rs 10 crore for a safe release.
Keeping in view the gravity of the situation, a police team started negotiating with the abductors through Manish’s father.
“The continuing negotiations made it clear that the abductors were hardened criminals. By laying a painstaking trap on the night of December 31, the team managed to rescue the victim upon payment of Rs 80 lakh,” said Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, deputy commissioner of police (special cell).
The ransom amount was paid as Manish’s safety and security, and release was given top preference while making efforts to identify the abductors.
“Soon after the teenager was released, we successfully identified a house in Gurgaon’s Jharsa village where he was held captive,” Yadav added.
Probe revealed that the house belonged to Phool Singh, 28, but he remained untraceable for the initial few days.
A massive manhunt was launched to trace the culprits by deploying strong teams in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat to develop clues about their possible whereabouts.
“Then information was received on Tuesday that some accused were likely to visit a tea stall near Dwarka Metro station. A trap was laid which led to arrest of Vikas Sehrawat, 31, Surender Singh Gahlot, 34, Jai Kumar, 32, on Tuesday evening,” Yadav added.
Arms, valuables seized
A 9 mm pistol with six live cartridges were recovered from the possession of Vikas, while Jai was carrying a .32 caliber pistol with five live cartridges. Manish’s cellphone, a 92-gram gold bracelet, a 105-gram gold chain, and a diamond ring were also recovered.
They told police that Phool played a pivotal role in planning and execution of the kidnapping, and was continuously travelling to avoid police net.
“Phool was later arrested near IMT Manesar at 4 pm on Wednesday,” Yadav added.
Police have recovered Rs 79.50 lakh from Phool, who said he spent Rs 50,000 while evading arrest. Phool manages some unauthorised parking lots and runs a newspaper distribution business in Gurgaon.
Initial probe has revealed that several criminal cases, including murder and attempt to murder, are registered against Phool, Vikas and Jai in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Surender, a BTech from Rohtak University, small time property dealer and cricket bookie, was involved in a forgery case concerning a DU admission racket in 2005.
He used to induce students aspiring for admission in Delhi College of Engineering and arrange pseudo candidates who would take entrance examinations on behalf of the actual applicants for a commission.