The Girinagar police on Wednesday cracked an abduction and extortion case. They arrested an autorickshaw driver and his associate for allegedly kidnapping a city-based advocate and robbing ₹20,000 from him on June 19.
The victim, Ashok, a native of Shantigrama in Hassan, returned to the city on the night of June 19. While he was walking towards the house, the accused in an autorickshaw confronted him around 2.45 a.m. The accused on the pretext of asking for an address pulled him into the vehicle, and drove towards NICE road to extort money.
When the accused realised that Mr. Ashok had only ₹200, they forced him to call his friends and demanded money on the pretext of a medical emergency. The accused managed to collect ₹20,000 and dropped him near Kanakapura Road, and escaped after taking away his mobile phone. The accused threatened Mr. Ashok with dire consequences if he informed the police .
Based on the complaint, the police registered a case of kidnapping and extortion and tracked down the accused through the money transaction trail. The accused have been remanded to judicial custody while efforts are on to track down the other three accused.