We leapt into river to escape ‘gunmen’ say round-world Britons
A BRITISH couple on a round-theworld trip have told how they leapt into an Indian river and swam to their inflatable dinghy to escape robbers they thought had a gun.
Matthew Kidd, 30, and Jessica Gray, 28, were camping on the shores of the Ganges when they were attacked.
Two men asked them for a selfie before attempting to rob them with a “gun”, which turned out to be a stick covered by a tea towel.
The pair, from Glasgow, were held up for an hour before they managed to leap into the river, swim to their boat and row across to a neighbouring village for help.
Police paraded two suspects with their faces covered and said they have been charged under “offences against foreigners, looting and molestation” and face a speedy trial.
A video shows former Edinburgh University student Jessica and Matthew on the safety of the opposite river bank trying to explain what happened to local rescuers.
Matthew can be heard saying: “They threatened us with a gun. We were there for about an hour.” After the rescue, Jessica told police: “We had just set up the camp in Pandarak and were about to start preparing our dinner. We noticed that some people were coming towards us.
“They pointed a gun at us demanding money. When we told them that we don’t have any money for them, they started abusing us physically.
“We somehow managed to free ourselves from their clutches after an hour and jumped on to our boat.
“We paddled briskly to cross over to the other side of the bank where local people came to our rescue.”
The couple began their journey on September 14. It is believed they were mid-way into a 300-mile trip down the river when they were attacked.
The villagers they found on the other side of the river informed police, who arrested two men in their early 20s around four hours later.
Manu Maharaj, of Patna police, said: “Both the accused were traced and arrested from near the banks of the Ganges.”