Four held for kidnap, murder of man

Four people, including a married couple, have been arrested for killing a 25-year-old man after kidnapping him from Maurya Enclave in north-west Delhi for Rs 70 lakh ransom, police said on Thursday.

Abhay Diwan, 27, his wife Mahima, 25, Jatin, 24, and Runeet Gulati, 20, were held after the police found  Malkaganj resident Shivam Kapoor’s partially burnt body lying near Pitampura on July 18. He was identified through Zonal Integrated Police Network (ZIPNET).

“His hands were tied with a red cloth, while his mouth and eyes were taped. The body was in a semi-burnt condition. According to ZIPNET, a missing complaint about Shivam was lodged at Sabzi Mandi police station on July 17,” said P Karunakaran, deputy commissioner of police (north-west).

The foursome wanted to kill Shivam and demand a ransom from his parents using his cellphone. They were nabbed before they made the call.

An 11-year-old boy, who lives in nearby Ekta Camp, told the police that he had seen some persons in a Maruti Swift car dump a body and burn it using petrol.

As Shivam was last seen with Runeet, police worked on that lead and found that Runeet’s friend Abhay and his wife were missing from the day of the murder and they owned a Swift. “They were apprehended after a search,” Karunakaran said.

Abhay, a gambler, had run a huge debt of Rs 70 lakh. He, along with the other two men, hatched a plan to kidnap some affluent person and demand ransom to clear his debt.

“Shivam’s friend Runeet knew that his father had sold a property and had big money. On July 17, Shivam was kidnapped and assaulted with a sharp cutter before being sedated,” Karunakaran said.

One of them even shot Shivam in the head to make sure he died.
They then purchased a bottle of petrol from a nearby petrol pump and dumped the body near Pitampura.