SUV hunt turns violent: Rajasthan man beaten, robbed in Bengaluru; one arrested

A 32-year-old man from Rajasthan was brutally attacked while attempting to recover his long-missing SUV in Bengaluru.

A search for a long-missing SUV ended in a violent attack for a 32-year-old man from Rajasthan, who was allegedly assaulted and robbed in Bengaluru, police said.

During the assault, the attackers allegedly snatched two mobile phones from him and fled with the SUV. Injured in the attack, Prakash was taken to hospital for treatment before approaching the police, the report stated. (Pexels/Representational)

The victim, Chandra Prakash from Jodhpur, had travelled to the city after tracing the location of his vehicle, which he had lent to a friend more than a year ago with the promise that it would be returned within weeks, police officials said. When the SUV was not handed back, Prakash filed a complaint in Jodhpur last year, but the matter remained unresolved.

According to police, Prakash later used a mobile tracking application and discovered that the vehicle was being used in Bengaluru. On February 23, he reached the city carrying a spare key, located the SUV parked on a roadside in east Bengaluru, unlocked it and drove away, reported news agency PTI.

Trouble followed later that night. At around 11:10 pm, as he approached the Bommanahalli Circle area, three men riding a two-wheeler stopped the SUV. When Prakash questioned them, a heated exchange reportedly broke out, following which the trio allegedly attacked him using an iron rod and a helmet, a senior police officer said.

During the assault, the attackers allegedly snatched two mobile phones from him and fled with the SUV. Injured in the attack, Prakash was taken to hospital for treatment before approaching the police, the report stated.

Based on his complaint, the police arrested one of the accused, Mangilal Choudary (40), a businessman from Rajasthan. Efforts are on to trace and apprehend the remaining two suspects involved in the incident.

During questioning, Choudary allegedly told investigators that he had given a friendly loan to an acquaintance who failed to repay it, and that the SUV had been handed over as security for the borrowed amount. Police said the vehicle had changed hands multiple times before eventually reaching Bengaluru, as per the report.

The SUV and the two stolen mobile phones have since been recovered, police added, while further investigation is under way to establish the full chain of events and the role of the remaining accused.

(With inputs from PTI)