Couple murders student to pay gambling debt

A student of hotel management at a prestigious Bangalore college along with a young married couple kidnapped a 25-year-old man for ransom, killed him and set his body on fire.

A student of hotel management at a prestigious Bangalore college along with a young married couple kidnapped a 25-year-old man for ransom, killed him and set his body on fire.

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Police said Abhay Diwan and his wife Mahima hatched the conspiracy to kidnap Shivam Kapoor, son of a businessman and had planned to demand Rs. 2 crore ransom.

However, the accused panicked when Kapoor got to know about their plan and tried to flee. Diwan shot Kapoor in his stomach and then stabbed him before giving him sedatives. After Kapoor died, Diwan shot him in the head to make sure he is dead. Then, the couple bought petrol and set the body on fire at an isolated place near the Ekta Camp JJ cluster in Pitampura.

The incident came to light after the police found a semi-burnt body from Pitampura. "His hands were tied while his mouth and eyes had been closed with plastic tape. An 11-year-old boy told us that he saw a swift car with four occupants, including a woman, dumping the body there," Tejender Singh Luthra, Joint Commissioner of Police (northern range) said.

Runeet Gulati, a friend of the victim, who had helped Diwan in luring Kapoor into the latter's trap and Jatin, a friend of the couple, have also been arrested.

Diwan told the police he did it to pay his gambling debt.