5 held for abducting Surat-based builder from Mira Road

Five gangsters, including a woman, landed into the custody of the Local Crime Branch (LCB) unit of the Thane (rural) police for abducting a Gujarat-based developer, assaulting him and extorting money.

According to police, the accused have been identified as Mohammed Wasim Mushtak Ahmed (31), Noor Maksood Khan (24), Mohammed Akib Shaikh (20), Tanvi Sanjay Acharya alias Dolly (37), all residents of Vasai and Aurangabad resident Faizal Abdul Khan (24). Two masterminds who planned the crime are absconding.

Police said the accused had abducted the developer by forcefully dragging him inside a car when he had come to attend a friend’s birthday party in Mira Road on December 2. He was blindfolded and taken to an apartment in a Vasai township, where he was confined and assaulted. The accused made him sign blank cheques and bonds.

The developer was later forced to call up his friend demanding a ransom of `12 lakh for his release. Under the pretext of giving them the money, the victim accompanied the accused to a building in Mira Road and cleverly managed to give them a slip before informing police.

Sensing the gravity of the case, SP Dr Shivaji Rathod deputed the LCB to conduct probes. Based on technical surveillance and images of the suspects captured in CCTV cameras, an LCB team led by senior inspector-Vyenkat Andhale and API Pramod Badhakh laid a trap and apprehended the accused from Bhabola, Vasai, on Friday night. While the SUV belonging to the developer was seized from the accused, the car they used in the crime was stolen from Vile Parle. Not ruling out more arrests, police lodged a case under sections 397, 364 (a) and 384 of the IPC against the accused. The Naya Nagar police is conducting further investigations, said the cop.