Delhi Youth Kidnaps Landlord’s Baby, Demands Rs 40 Lakh Ransom to Move in With Girlfriend; Held

The accused booked a taxi using an app-based service and landed in Ghaziabad. He was later nabbed from Uttam Nagar area.

New Delhi: Love is blind. But is it so blind that one cannot see between right and wrong when in love? In one such case of blind love, or whatever you would call it, an engineering graduate was arrested for allegedly kidnapping his landlord’s seven-month-old child for a ransom of Rs 40 lakh in outer Delhi’s Ranhola area so that he could move in with his girlfriend, police said on Saturday. The accused has been identified as Priyanshu Kumar (24), they said. The infant was later rescued and reunited with his parents.

According to police, Kumar went to his landlord’s house on Friday and told them that he wanted to play with the child. Since the child was sleeping, his mother told Kumar to come later, but he insisted to stay back. When the infant’s mother went out of the room to collect his clothes, the accused left the house with the baby. She immediately informed her husband about the incident.

“The child’s father later got a call from Kumar, asking him to pay Rs 40 lakh if he wanted his child back,” a senior police officer said. A case was registered and multiple teams were formed to trace the accused, said Parvinder Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer).

During investigation, the escape route of the accused from his house was tracked and it was found that he had taken the child towards Uttam Nagar terminal on foot covering a distance of about four kilometres. From there, he booked a taxi using an app-based service and landed in Ghaziabad, he said.

The police team decided to keep the accused engaged by luring him with token ransom amounts and keep him involved through chats and calls, the DCP said.

The police team finally planned to intercept the accused at Lajwanti Chowk. After more than four hours of chase, the team was able to intercept the car and the kidnapped child was rescued from Pankha Road towards Uttam Nagar Terminal. The accused, however, managed to run away, leaving the taxi behind, Singh said. The accused was later nabbed from Uttam Nagar area.

During interrogation, he disclosed that he was in relationship with a girl from Kanpur and needed money to fulfil her demands. He wanted to settle down with her. As he did not have a job, he thought of kidnapping the infant, the officer added.

(With inputs from PTI)