Bengaluru college student abducted for Rs 50,000 ransom; rescued in 4 hours

The four arrested men have been identified as Aditya Bonsle alias Aditya Roxie, Shaurya Agarwal, Syed Bilal, and Nikunj, and all of them are associated with the same Bengaluru university.

The police said Roxie, identified as a former student and a native of Maharashtra, had been passing himself off as a local among peers and used an alias on social media. The other three are currently enrolled at the Bengaluru university.

According to the police, they received the first alert around 8.40 pm, when Yash Jain, a third-year BCA student and Mohanty’s hostel mate, received a frantic call about the abduction while he was in J P Nagar with another hostel mate, Aditya Mewar.

Around half an hour later, a call came from Mohanty’s phone with a man demanding Rs 50,000 as ransom and threatening to kill him if the money was not paid. Mewar received that call.

The two students rushed back and began searching for Mohanty on their own, but with no breakthrough. They called the police helpline 112 around 1 am — nearly four hours after the abduction. A formal complaint triggered an immediate response.

The police then asked Jain and Mewar to transfer small amounts — Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000 — to the abductors, keeping them engaged and buying time. Assuring that they would transfer all Rs 50,000 but in parts, the victims transferred about Rs 5,000.

Simultaneously, the police tracked Mohanty’s mobile phone signal, which led them to the accused Bilal’s house in Jayanagar. The team moved in and rescued Mohanty, who had been confined inside and threatened with an air pistol and a knife.

During interrogation, the accused claimed Mohanty owed them money — an allegation he has flatly denied. The police said no evidence has been found so far to support the claim.

They said they have seized the car, the air pistol, and the knife used in the abduction.

All four accused were produced before a magistrate Sunday and remanded in judicial custody, they added.