Warring cops botch up ransom trap; man loses Rs 80 lakh
Two teams that were to nab kidnappers of a 3-year-old lose the plot in battle of egos.
A turf war between two of its teams has left the Mumbai police red-faced. In a recent case of kidnapping of a three-year-old boy, police teams had laid a trap to catch the kidnappers red-handed while the boy’s father paid the ransom.
However, while the money exchanged hands, and the boy safely returned, the father was stunned to discover that despite doing exactly as the police had told him, the kidnappers had got away with the Rs 80 lakh ransom.
While the two teams involved – the Aarey Colony police and the Crime Branch – are blaming each other, the victim said he will lodge a formal complaint against the cops.
“It is a sensitive matter and I will speak when time is right,” he told when Mirror contacted him. “I am now considering action against the police for leaking the information to the press.”
On January 17, three men posing as courier boys snatched three-year-old Yug Varadkar from his Aarey Colony home. His father Rahul, 40, immediately called the police and the Aarey Colony police started working on the case. The Crime Branch opened a parallel investigation.
On January 20, Rahul got a letter demanding Rs 80 lakh, which he had got after a recent sale of one of his properties. On January 23, the kidnappers called him and asked him to board a Kasara bound train from Kurla station.
This is when the police decided to lay a trap. Ten plain clothes men from Units 11 and 12 of the Crime Branch were to board the night train with Rahul, while two cars were to follow by road. DCP Ambadas Pote himself was to be present in one of the cars.
At this point, the local police maintain, the victim contacted them and asked them to stay away as he had more faith in the Crime Branch. Rahul then boarded the train, and when it was crossing Devlali, he got a call from the kidnappers asking him to throw the bag with cash on seeing a torchlight flashing from below an approaching bridge.
The cops gave him the go ahead and, as the train reached the bridge, Rahul saw the flashing torchlight and threw the bag. He got off at Nashik and returned to Mumbai.
On January 24, a burqa-clad woman escorted Yug to a small hotel near his house and, after ordering some food for him, left him there. Rahul got the final call and was asked to go to the hotel. When he contacted the police after bringing his son home, he was shocked to learn that they had let the kidnappers escape.
Apparently, the two cars that were to reach the spot before the train crossed the bridge never reached there, allowing the kidnappers to get away.
“We were very close to catching the accused, but the Crime Branch goofed up at the last minute,” said a local police officer. Uttam More, senior inspector, Aarey Colony police, added: “When we called him to record his statement, he blamed the Crime Branch.”
Crime Branch officials, however, said they did not take any rash decision as the child’s life was involved. “We couldn’t take a risk,” said DCP Ambadas Pote. “His life was more important than the money. We are still working on the case and we will nab the accused soon.”
A turf war between two of its teams has left the Mumbai police red-faced. In a recent case of kidnapping of a three-year-old boy, police teams had laid a trap to catch the kidnappers red-handed while the boy’s father paid the ransom.
However, while the money exchanged hands, and the boy safely returned, the father was stunned to discover that despite doing exactly as the police had told him, the kidnappers had got away with the Rs 80 lakh ransom.
Interestingly, sources familiar with the case said the incident unravelled like a sequence from the 1978 ransom drama Inkaar, starring Vinod Khanna and Amjad Khan. In that movie, just as in this case, the kidnappers make the victim throw a bagful of cash from a moving train.
While the two teams involved – the Aarey Colony police and the Crime Branch – are blaming each other, the victim said he will lodge a formal complaint against the cops.
“It is a sensitive matter and I will speak when time is right,” he told when Mirror contacted him. “I am now considering action against the police for leaking the information to the press.”
On January 17, three men posing as courier boys snatched three-year-old Yug Varadkar from his Aarey Colony home. His father Rahul, 40, immediately called the police and the Aarey Colony police started working on the case. The Crime Branch opened a parallel investigation.
On January 20, Rahul got a letter demanding Rs 80 lakh, which he had got after a recent sale of one of his properties. On January 23, the kidnappers called him and asked him to board a Kasara bound train from Kurla station.
This is when the police decided to lay a trap. Ten plain clothes men from Units 11 and 12 of the Crime Branch were to board the night train with Rahul, while two cars were to follow by road. DCP Ambadas Pote himself was to be present in one of the cars.
At this point, the local police maintain, the victim contacted them and asked them to stay away as he had more faith in the Crime Branch. Rahul then boarded the train, and when it was crossing Devlali, he got a call from the kidnappers asking him to throw the bag with cash on seeing a torchlight flashing from below an approaching bridge.
The cops gave him the go ahead and, as the train reached the bridge, Rahul saw the flashing torchlight and threw the bag. He got off at Nashik and returned to Mumbai.
On January 24, a burqa-clad woman escorted Yug to a small hotel near his house and, after ordering some food for him, left him there. Rahul got the final call and was asked to go to the hotel. When he contacted the police after bringing his son home, he was shocked to learn that they had let the kidnappers escape.
Apparently, the two cars that were to reach the spot before the train crossed the bridge never reached there, allowing the kidnappers to get away.
“We were very close to catching the accused, but the Crime Branch goofed up at the last minute,” said a local police officer. Uttam More, senior inspector, Aarey Colony police, added: “When we called him to record his statement, he blamed the Crime Branch.”
Crime Branch officials, however, said they did not take any rash decision as the child’s life was involved. “We couldn’t take a risk,” said DCP Ambadas Pote. “His life was more important than the money. We are still working on the case and we will nab the accused soon.”
