3 arrested for kidnapping Gujarat bizman for ₹68L ransom

MUMBAI: The Vakola police have arrested three individuals for allegedly kidnapping a 60-year-old businessman from Gujarat and his associate for ransom and keeping them confined in a room in Goregaon for four days

MUMBAI: The Vakola police have arrested three individuals for allegedly kidnapping a 60-year-old businessman from Gujarat and his associate for ransom and keeping them confined in a room in Goregaon for four days. The accused had allegedly called up the son of the businessman, demanding a ransom of ₹68 lakh which was later brought down to ₹25 lakh. The son, a Santacruz resident, then reported the matter to the Vakola police who rescued the kidnapped men.

3 arrested for kidnapping Gujarat bizman for ₹68L ransom

The garment businessman, Keshav Chaudhary, had arrived in Mumbai from Gujarat on February 21 with his associate, Arun Kumar Charang, 30. While they were on their way to Kandivali for business purposes, Keshav received a call from a certain Soni, who identified himself as a gold dealer and said that he could give him gold at cheaper rates than the market. He met the victims in Kandivali and brought them to the Ram Mandir area in Goregaon where he confined them in a room.

Meanwhile, Keshav’s son, Mahesh Chaudhary, 42, who is also the complainant in the case, was trying his father’s number but it was switched off. On February 24, he finally received a call from his father’s number, who spoke to him and told him that he had been kidnapped for ransom. The accused then took the phone and told the complainant that his father had taken ₹68 lakh from him which he had not returned, and he would be killed if the amount was not paid immediately.

An hour later, Mahesh received a message from an unknown mobile number, instructing him to hand over the cash to an Angadia agent in Malad. When Mahesh called back on the number, the accused started abusing him and told him to immediately pay ₹25 lakh to the agent. He also warned that failure to do so would result in grave consequences.

Mahesh then approached the Vakola police station where a kidnapping case was registered, said deputy commissioner of police Manish Kalvania of Zone 8. Six teams were formed to probe the matter and based on technical evidence, the main accused, Soni, was traced to Kandivali and arrested. During his interrogation, he revealed the location where the businessman and his associate were confined, Kalvania said. The victims were rescued from a flat in Goregaon and two of Soni’s accomplices were arrested, said the police officer

The arrested accused were identified as Radheshyam Soni, 30, Satish Yadav, 33, and Dharmendra Ravidas, 40, all residents of western suburbs. The police said that Soni, who was aware of the 60-year-old’s business and his dealings with people in the Kandivali area, was the one who hatched the plan to kidnap him for ransom. Soni is a salesman who sells ayurvedic products, Yadav is an insurance agent, and Ravidas is a security guard, informed the police.