Chandigarh: Kidnappers let teen go unharmed after 4 hours, fail to collect ransom

The accused were using a local number and had kept moving in the city without stopping at one place for long

A 15-year-old resident of Kishangarh village, who was kidnapped by three men for ₹50 lakh ransom, was released after four hours on Tuesday.

A 15-year-old resident of Kishangarh village in Chandigarh was kidnapped and the abductors had asked for a ransom of ₹50 lakh. (HT FILE)

The father of the teenager, who is a cook and runs a canteen in Sector 19, told the police that his son had gone with his two friends for cycling to Manimajra. He said that when they reached near a railway crossing, his son was dragged into a vehicle by three persons who came in a white Maruti Suzuki Brezza bearing a Haryana number.

The 46-year-old father said that later one of the kidnappers had called him and demanded ₹50 lakh ransom to free the son, threatening to kill the teen if he failed to pay. The police are not ruling out the possibility of the kidnapping being the work of someone known to the family or to the teenager.

A case under Section 364A of the Indian Penal Code was registered at Manimajra police station.

Teenager unharmed

The police were informed and cash to pay the kidnappers was readied, however, the accused never turned up. The police had laid the trap and even sent the victim’s father and sister to the bridge in Sector 21, Panchkula, to handover the money.

The kidnappers were talking to the teenager’s sister, as they kept changing the locations, to hand over the cash. Finally, they had called the father and sister to the Sector-21 bridge in Panchkula, but they did not turn up. At about 8.46am, the kidnappers dropped the teenager near Sector 21. And he was handed over to the family.

Technical surveillance being used to track kidnappers

The police had put the phone number being used by the kidnappers on surveillance. The accused were using a local number and had kept moving in the city without stopping at one place for long. The police is now tracing the route and scanning footage to get a clue. Three people have been rounded up for questioning.

Discrepancies in statement

The teenager told the police that the accused had taken him to Baltana and that they were constantly on the move. The police said they were scanning CCTV footage installed in the area where the 15-year-old said that the accused had stopped to get the vehicle refueled. So far, the police have failed to gather any evidence of the same. The number plate bearing Haryana registration number was a fake, they added.