Cousin held for kidnapping boy

Four people were arrested on Thursday, a day after they allegedly kidnapped an eight-year-old boy. Among those arrested was a distant cousin of the kidnapped boy’s mother.

Four people were arrested on Thursday, a day after they allegedly kidnapped an eight-year-old boy. Among those arrested was a distant cousin of the kidnapped boy’s mother.

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The police arrested the boy’s uncle, Sonusingh Satyasingh, 19, Paritosh Mandal’s, 38, Mohammed Sheikh, 20 and Sunny Sisodia in connection with the case.

Savarkarnagar resident, Rohan Parekh went missing on Wednesday night while he was playing near his building.

The police said Satyasingh, a Vashi resident, along with Sheikh kidnapped Rohan and was kept at Mandal’s house at Nerul from where he was rescued.

On Wednesday, around 9:30pm, Rohan’s mother received a call saying he had been kidnapped. The caller warned her not to approach the police.

On Thursday afternoon, the kidnappers called again and demanded a ransom of Rs 15 lakh. The police traced the call to Vashi.

There was another call from the kidnappers at 3:45pm.

However, the family approached the Vartaknagar police station the same night and a case of kidnapping was registered.

“We dispatched six teams to several areas in Thane and Navi Mumbai. Once it was known that the call was made from Vashi, our men were alerted. The officers saw a young boy making a call from a PCO while covering his mouth. They apprehended him and on interrogation found he was the one making the ransom calls,” said Thane police commissioner, KP Raghuvanshi.

They were with the family during the entire ordeal and would pass on information to the kidnappers.

“They planned to divide the money among themselves and were to pay Rs. 1.5 lakh to Mandal for keeping the boy,” Raghuvanshi said.