Man held for ransom calls to girl's father

He did so without her knowledge

The boyfriend of a 21-year-old woman has been arrested in South Delhi’s Mahipalpur for making phone calls for ransom of Rs 10 lakh from her father in Karnataka, police said.

The woman, a BA second year student staying with family in Karnataka’s Bagalkot district, had eloped with 27-year-old Sujoy Dev. But Dev made the ransom calls without informing the woman. 

Dev, who hails from West Bengal, was nabbed after a team of the Karnataka police sought assistance from the Delhi police on Sunday. The Karnataka police are also looking into the human trafficking angle. 

“The woman had eloped with Dev last week after taking Rs three lakh in cash and gold jewellery from her home. They were staying at a guesthouse in Mahipalpur,” Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Yadav said.

About seven months back, the woman had received a missed call on her mobile phone and when she called back, Dev had introduced himself as a businessman. 

They became friends and started talking over phone frequently. 

On the other hand, the woman’s family was looking for a groom for her and arranged her marriage to be solemnised in April. 

However, Dev convinced the woman to elope with him after stealing cash and jewellery from her house.

On February 20, the woman reached Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore with Rs three lakh in cash and about 100 gm of gold jewellery. “On the same day, they boarded a flight and reached Delhi. Dev took the woman to a guesthouse in Mahipalpur, but did not have enough money,” Yadav said.

Dev then made a ransom call to her father and demanded Rs 10 lakh, but the woman did not know about it. The woman’s father approached police and a case was filed in the Ilkal police station. 

Dev has been charged with kidnapping for ransom under the Indian Penal Code. Dev works with his father who owns a small unit manufacturing T-shirts in 24 Parganas district of West Bengal.