YouTuber convicted in 31-year-old kidnapping-murder case arrested; had changed identity

New Delhi: The Delhi Police has arrested a 54-year-old man, who had allegedly been living under a false identity and was known locally as a social activist and YouTuber, in connection with a kidnapping-murder case from 31 years ago, an official said on Saturday.

The accused, identified as Salim Khan alias Salim Ahmed, also known as Salim Wastik, was apprehended from Loni in Uttar Pradesh by a team of crime branch. He had been evading arrest for over two decades after jumping interim bail granted in 2000, police said.

According to police, Khan was convicted in 1997 along with his associate Anil for the kidnapping and murder of a 13-year-old son of a cement businessman in northeast Delhi.

"The boy was abducted in January 1995 while on his way to school, and a ransom of Rs 30,000 was demanded for his release," a senior police officer said.

The officer further said the victim's father had received a phone call from the kidnappers, who instructed him to deliver the ransom amount at a bus stand near the Loni flyover. The caller also warned him against informing the police.

However, during the investigation, suspicion fell on Salim Khan, who was then working as a martial arts instructor at the boy's school.

A police team questioned him and based on his disclosure, recovered the boy's body from a drain near Mustafabad in Delhi, according to the officer. The co-accused Anil was later identified and eventually surrendered before a court in February 1995.

Following trial proceedings, both accused were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a sessions court in Delhi. They later challenged the verdict in the Delhi High Court. During the pendency of the appeal, Salim Khan was granted interim bail in November 2000 but failed to surrender thereafter. His conviction was upheld by the high court in 2011.

"After jumping bail, Salim Khan managed to evade law enforcement by frequently changing locations across Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. He reportedly worked as an almirah maker in places such as Karnal and Ambala before settling permanently in Loni around 2010," the officer said.

To avoid arrest, he allegedly declared himself dead in official records and assumed a new identity as Salim Wastik or Salim Ahmed. Under this identity, he ran a shop dealing in women's garments and accessories and also became active on social media platforms, projecting himself as a social activist and YouTuber.

Police said the breakthrough came after a crime branch team received a tip-off, which they then used to verify his identity using old photographs and fingerprint records. A team, with assistance from local police in Loni, carried out the operation and arrested him.

Notably, police said that in February this year, Salim Khan was allegedly attacked by two men at his office in Loni and sustained multiple stab injuries. He was treated at the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital and later shifted to a private hospital in Saket. Following the incident, he was even provided security by the Uttar Pradesh Police.

After completing legal formalities, the accused has been brought to Delhi and lodged in Tihar Jail.