abduction
The victim, a businessman from Narmadapuram in Madhya Pradesh, had travelled to Kolkata on Sept 22 for business. Police arrested Rajat Biswas (60), a resident of Panihati and a former senior Customs official; Gopal Das (48), a Basirhat resident who worked as a Customs canteen staffer; and Samim Gazi (30), a Basirhat resident who works as a driver.
He came in contact with the suspects through Facebook, according to police. The gang reportedly told him they could arrange antique items at a price much lower than the market rate. He decided to leave, but the men abducted him,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar City Police.
Kolkata: What began as an antique deal arranged through Facebook turned into a kidnapping ordeal for a Bhopal-based antique collector, who travelled to Kolkata, was taken to Basirhat after being lured by a promise of cheap antiques and was allegedly held captive before police mounted a ransom trap near Haldirams on VIP Road and rescued him. “There, he realised that they were fake. The rescue operation was then planned around the ransom handover. Police asked the man’s son to pretend to agree to the demand. The abductors asked him to come to Haldirams crossing at night. He was instructed to bring a bag apparently containing cash. The dramatic operation unfolded when the youth reached the designated spot, placed the bag near a roadside bin and quietly left the area, as instructed by police. Plainclothes officers had already positioned themselves nearby and kept the spot under surveillance. All three were produced before a Barrackpore court and sent to police custody.
The gang members met him outside Kolkata airport on Thursday and took him to Basirhat to inspect the antiques. The man’s son flew to Kolkata on Friday and lodged a complaint at the NSCBI Airport Police Station.
Around 2pm on Thursday, the businessman called up his son from his mobile and told him that around five to six men had abducted him in the Basirhat area and were demanding Rs 20 lakh. The victim was then moved to a hideout in Burrabazar. He was allegedly assaulted and tortured.