Police free abducted businessman, bustgang of 8 in Rs 25-lakh ransom trap

CHENNAI: Police on Tuesday night arrested eight members of a professional gang of kidnappers, drawing them into a ransom trap and rescuing a 54-year-old businessman they had abducted in Red Hills 24 hours earlier.

V Ganesan, the proprietor of a transport company and the gang’s third victim, had fallen for a ruse himself: One of the arrested suspects posed as a uniformed policeman to lead the businessman into the gang’s clutches.

“Police teams arrested abductors and freed the businessman from a car in which the gang had restrained him,” additional commissioner of police of north Chennai H M Jayaram said on Wednesday. Ganesan’s relative Ramachandran received a ransom call from the gang at 9.30am on Tuesday, around 12 hours after the abduction, an investigating officer said. The gang demanded Rs 25 lakh in exchange for his release.

“The businessman’s family contacted the Red Hills police,” the officer said. “With the family’s help, special teams under assistant commissioner of police S Prabhakaran, inspector P Jawahar and sub-inspector Sathishkumar came up with a plan to free the captive.”

Ramachandran received a second ransom call and agreed to make the payment. The kidnappers directed him to deliver the cash at a spot near near Vandalur but, even as Ramachandran and another relative, with police shadowing them, arrived there, they changed the drop point. At 10pm, they finally agreed on a site near a garbage bin in Vandalur.

“We had by this time identified the gang’s SUV from surveillance camera footage,” North Chennai joint commissioner of police of Prem Anand Sinha said. “Ramachandran demanded the kidnappers show proof that Ganesan had not been harmed. When he saw Ganesan in their SUV, he put down a case with the cash.”

“Armed police officers surrounded the SUV and arrested the gang members,” he said. “Two men slipped away and tried to escape on foot, two constables, Nallasamy and Baskaran, caught them.”

Police seized two knives, the vehicle and fake police uniform from the suspects.

Sakthivel alias ‘Vadakarai’ Sakthi, 49, a Red Hills resident involved in 13 cases including a 2005 murder, had masterminded the abduction, police said. Among the others arrested was V Suman, 39, of Thiruporur, who faces two charges of murder for gain.

“Suman posed as a policeman and accosted Ganesan on Monday night,” the officer said. “He took Ganesan toward the gang’s SUV, which had a ‘POLICE’ sign stuck on it, and his accomplices bundled the businessman into the vehicle.”

Police also arrested K Madan Kumar, 27, M Ganesh, 37, A Ashok, 35, S Rajesh, 21, S Satheeshkumar, 25, and S Siva, 25.