Hyderabad: Interstate gangs try out new kidnap tactic

Hyderabad: A new kind of kidnapping has surfaced recently in which wealthy businessmen are courted by gangs belonging to other states offering them business and then taken captive. After that they make ransom calls to the captive’s homes.

The kidnappers persuade the businessmen to meet them. After that they take them to a secluded place and threaten them with country firearms.

In June, Hyderabad police nabbed two gangs and seized Rs 38 lakh from them. The arrested men, Shakeel, 26, a student, and Akbar, 35, a transporter, from Haryana, had lured two businessmen, Praduman Lohia, the director of Gajanan Tamra Industries in Cherlapally, a leading manufacturer of copper wires and his relative Bharat Lila, promising them business and held them captive till their family paid up.

“On May 19, the victims went to Delhi after striking a deal with the gang. Shakeel met them at the airport and took them in a taxi to Sona near Gurugram. As per the plan of the gang's leaders, Sajid and Mujassars, they got into a car driven by one Ashru. After some time, another four-member gang stopped them and robbed the victims flashing country weapons. They took away watches, laptops, a gold chain, Rs 2.9 lakh, debit and credit cards and took them to Gavdi village in Bharatpur district, where they confined them to a house owned by one Akbar who threatened them by firing a gun in the air. He assaulted them and threatened to kill them. They took the PIN numbers of their cards and withdrew money,” said detective department DCP Avinash Mohanty.

“The gang demanded Rs 120 lakh but settled for Rs 50 lakh. After receiving the money, the gang shifted the victims to the house of one Sarju in Hodal in the Palwal district of Haryana along with Shakeel and demanded another Rs 20 lakh saying that they are another team of kidnappers and they agreed for Rs 10 lakh, which was transferred to Shakeel's account. After this, the gang took the victims to Utawar bus stop in Palwal from where they boarded a bus to Delhi and reached Hyderabad on May 21,” added Mr Mohanty.

Meanwhile, the victim's parents approached Hyderabad police commissioner seeking help. Immediately, the bank accounts were frozen and a case was registered at the Afzalgunj police station.

In another case, two members of an inter-state gang of dacoits were arrested from Rajasthan by a Central Crime Station (CCS) team. The accused were one Arshad alias Aarthi and Hassan Mohammad from the Alwar district of Rajasthan. Police also seized a country pistol with two rounds from the duo. The special team also went to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan and collected evidence.

Based on this the police identified four other members of the gang and subsequently nabbed them in Gujarat. They are being brought to the city on a production warrant, the officer said.

Police said that there are around 25 gangs consisting of over 100 offenders across villages in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.