New Delhi, Nov 1 A Rs 5,000 UPI transfer used as a digital breadcrumb, a cooperative cybercafe owner, and a trap set in a narrow Karawal Nagar lane enabled the Delhi Police to rescue a 13-year-old boy and arrest his kidnapper within three hours of his mother raising the alarm.
A man identified as Akash had allegedly kidnapped a boy, demanding Rs 40,000 ransom. He was caught within three hours of receiving information while collecting the ransom, after the Rs 5,000 UPI transfer, at a cybercafe in Karawal Nagar, a police officer said on Sunday.
The incident came to light on October 30 when a woman approached the Jyoti Nagar police station in Shahdara, saying her son had gone out to buy some items but did not return.
“She subsequently received a call from an unidentified person demanding Rs 40,000 for his release. A case was registered, and a team was constituted to trace the child and apprehend the accused,” the officer said.
During the investigation, the kidnapper contacted the woman again, insisting on receiving the ransom through UPI. He shared a barcode, following which police transferred Rs 5,000 through the account of a police personnel to track the transaction.
“Technical surveillance led the investigators to a cybercafe in Karawal Nagar, where the owner disclosed that a man, accompanied by a minor boy, had used his UPI barcode to receive Rs 5,000 in exchange for a commission of Rs 50,” the officer added.
Police examined the cybercafe’s CCTV footage, following which the woman identified her missing son.
“We then initiated another transaction of Rs 5,000 through the same barcode to lure the accused to come again to the same place,” he said.
The accused subsequently returned to the cybercafe with the boy to collect the money in cash. Police personnel, with the assistance of the cafe owner, apprehended him and safely rescued the child.
During interrogation, Akash disclosed that he worked as a delivery helper in Sadar Bazar and knew the victim through his cousin. He had lured the boy onto his scooter before making the ransom call to his mother, police said.
Police recovered Rs 5,000 in cash, the mobile phone allegedly used to make the ransom call, and the scooter used in the kidnapping. The cafe owner had also received Rs 50 as commission for facilitating the transaction.
Police said the accused has no previous criminal involvement, adding that the rescued child was reunited with his family.
Police said that they are also investigating if the accused planned the kidnapping alone or with help of anyone else.
(PTI News)
