Greater Noida: Woman suspect in kidnapping of 11-year-old boy arrested

Police said it was she who allegedly provided crucial information about the child’s and his family’s movements to the kidnappers

A woman suspect was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the kidnapping of a 11-year-old boy from Greater Noida earlier this week, the police said on Wednesday, adding that she is the third person to be in the case so far.

The woman in police custody on Wednesday. (SOURCED)

The woman, identified by her first name as Reenu, was arrested from the Luksar area of Greater Noida. Police said it was she who allegedly provided crucial information about the child’s and his family’s movements to the kidnappers and she kept watching the family even after the boy was kidnapped.

On October 2 (Sunday), four men abducted 11-year-old Harsh Singh from Luksar village and allegedly demanded a ransom of ₹30 lakh from the child’s father.

On Monday morning, the police managed to arrest two of the suspects, identified as Vishal Maurya and Rishabh, after a gunfight in which the two suspects sustained gunshot wounds. Later that day, police gunned down the main suspect, identified as Shivam. Another suspect, identified as Vishal Pal, is still on the run, police said.

“During the investigation, we found that Shivam’s woman friend Reenu was also part of the gang as she had carried out reccee of the boy’s house and gave the rest of the gang detailed information on the boy’s and his family daily routine. Reenu is the sister of absconding suspect Vishal Pal and lives in the same locality as that of the victim. During interrogation, she revealed that she was also keeping a track on the family after the abduction,” said Abhishek Verma, deputy commissioner of police, Greater Noida.

He further mentioned that a team from Ecotech-1 police station arrested her late Tuesday from her residence in Luksar.

So far three people have been arrested including Reenu while Shivam was killed in a shoot-out with the police on Monday. “Vishal Pal is still on the run and police are working to nab him,” said Verma.

Police found that Shivam was the mastermind of the entire abduction and hatched the plan around a week ago. He used to work as a driver for Megh Singh, the child’s father, for the past 1.5 months.

Shivam knew that Megh Singh could pay the ransom they demanded, said police.

Reenu has been booked under section 364a (kidnapping for ransom), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of a common intention) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.