Abducted youth murdered 3 days before ransom calls made

The deal was negotiated and settled at Rs 2.35 lakh and Pyarelal,a former field gun factory employee,made the payment on March 19.

On information provided by kidnappers,the police team dug out Kashyap’s body from a farmhouse at Bithoor on late Monday night. A case of kidnapping and murder has been registered against the four arrested persons at Panki police station.

A resident of 82-A,B Block Panki,Kashyap worked as a marketing executive in Meghna Enterprises firm of Fazalganj area. He became friends with Vikki,Ravi,Kamlesh and Rahul at a gymnasium situated in Kalyanpur area.  

Kalyanpur Circle Officer Surendra Nath Tiwari said: “The five became good friends and they held a recreation party every weekend. Vikki,Kamlesh,Ravi and Rahul came from financially weak backgrounds.”

“Vikki was the mastermind behind the kidnapping and murder,and Ravi,Kamlesh and Rahul abetted the crime,” said Tiwari.

Around 5 pm on March 14,Kashyap left home with Vikki,who took him to the Bithoor farmhouse where the other three friends were waiting.

“We mixed pesticides in the alcohol served to Kashyap and later strangled him to death,” Vikki told police.

After Kashyap died,his hands and legs were tied with a rope and he was kept inside a jute bag,said Vikki,adding: “We had no place to hide him and at the same time,the fear of getting caught prompted us to murder him before making the ransom call. Around 10 pm on the same day,we buried him in the farmhouse.”

On March 15,the kidnappers decided on their strategy for the ransom and made the first phone call two days later.

“On March 18,the deal was settled at Rs 2.35 lakh,” Vikki said,adding that he asked Pyarelal to drop the bag containing money at Marwadi station of Varanasi from a moving train on March 19.

The ransom amount was equally distributed among the four kidnappers,Vikki said.

“All the ransom calls were made from Kashyap’s mobile phone,and once we got the amount,the phone was switched off,” Vikki said.

Six mobile phones,Rs 90,000 cash and a motorcycle were recovered from the kidnappers.

Kashyap’s brother,Suraj,meanwhile said: “When all our efforts to trace him went in vain,we informed the Panki police on March 15 and a case of missing person was registered.”

The kidnappers made the first ransom call on March 17 and demanded Rs 15 lakh,said Suraj,adding: “We were not in a position to pay such a big ransom,and after few negotiations,the deal was settled at Rs 2.35 lakh.”

On March 20,Pyarelal told the Panki police that even after he had paid the ransom amount,his son did not return. A case of kidnapping was thereafter registered against unidentified persons.

Kanpur DIG Prem Prakash said: “Our Special Operation Group (SOG) team concentrated on a few close friends of Kashyap.” Through mobile phone surveillance,the SOG team confirmed the involvement of Vikki and three others in Kashyap’s kidnapping.  

“All four persons involved in the kidnapping-cum-murder were arrested on late Monday night. On the information provided by them,the body was dug out from the Bithoor farmhouse,” he added.