• Abduction in Vijayanagar, rescue in K.R. Nagar
• Desperate gang targets victim who flaunted gold
• Rs. 10 lakh ransom call placed; Police track location
• Four kidnappers arrested, one manages to escape

Mysore/Mysuru: In a dramatic overnight operation, Vijayanagar Police arrested four of the five men who allegedly assaulted and kidnapped a realtor near a club in Vijayanagar 3rd Stage last night.

The victim was rescued unharmed and the vehicle used in the abduction was seized — all within eight hours of the crime. Police interrogation revealed that the kidnappers were desperate for money and they hatched a plan to kidnap Lokesh as they had often seen him moving around flaunting gold ornaments.

The kidnapped realtor has been identified as Lokesh, a resident of Vijayanagar 4th Stage. The accused are labourers from Metagalli in Mysuru, Palahalli in Srirangapatna taluk and Nanjangud.

The abduction

At around 8.30 pm, Lokesh was returning home from The Heritage Club at Vijayanagar 3rd Stage, C-Block, on his Royal Enfield. He stopped midway to attend a phone call when a Tata Sumo (KA-12-M-638) carrying five men suddenly pulled up from behind.

Before Lokesh could react, the gang allegedly assaulted him, dragged him into the vehicle and sped away towards Hinkal. A few people near a nearby milk booth witnessed the shocking scene but, fearing for their safety, did not intervene. They immediately alerted Vijayanagar Police.

Inspector S.D. Suresh Kumar and his team rushed to the spot, conducted a mahazar and recovered Lokesh’s abandoned bike. Using the registration number, they traced Lokesh’s identity and obtained his mobile number.

Ransom demand, Police action

Meanwhile, the kidnappers stopped their vehicle between K.R. Nagar and Hampapura. There, they forced Lokesh to call his wife and demand that she transfer Rs. 10 lakh to his account.

However, the kidnappers were unaware that the Police were already tracking Lokesh’s phone location in real time.

Around 4 am today, after hours of pursuit, Vijayanagar Police — with support from K.R. Nagar Police — closed in on the vehicle. In a swift operation, they surrounded the suspects, rescued Lokesh and arrested four of the accused.

However, one of the accused managed to escape in the chaos. The Tata Sumo used in the kidnapping was seized on the spot.

During interrogation, the arrested men confessed that they were labourers with heavy debts.

Desperate for money, they decided to kidnap Lokesh as they had often seen him moving around wearing heavy gold ornaments. They had quietly tracked his movements before striking.

Police Inspector Suresh Kumar, Sub-Inspector Anand and staff members Manjunath, Likith and Venkatesh were part of the successful rescue operation. All four arrested men will be produced before the Magistrate later today, according to Police sources.