Post News Network
Puri: Kumbharpada police Thursday rescued a three-year-old boy who was allegedly abducted for a ransom by his paternal uncle from Narendrakona area of the city Tuesday.
Police said they rescued the boy and arrested his alleged abductor, Akshaya Pradhan, at Talcher in Angul district. An abduction case was registered on the basis of a complaint lodged by Narendra Pradhan, the boy’s father.
Police said Akshaya, Narendra’s cousin, had taken the boy out for a ride Tuesday, but neither Akshaya nor the boy returned home till late in the evening. Then came Akshaya’s phone calls to Narendra with the demand of Rs 5 lakh for the boy’s release.
Police said Narendra’s father, Dhruba Charan Pradhan, had mortgaged their ancestral house to a commercial bank to take a loan two decades ago. Since Dhruba failed to repay the loan in time, the bank had decided to auction the house. Akshaya, the son of Dhruba’s brother Akrura, had repaid the loan and saved the house from auction, following which Narendra had assured him that he would bear a part of the loan burden.
“Narendra, however, failed to keep his promise because of financial distress. Akshaya had abducted the boy to get the money from Nerendra. He has confessed to the crime during interrogation,” said Kumbharpada police in-charge Khireshwar Sahu.
Akshaya reportedly first took the boy to Cuttack by a train and the duo spent a night at Cuttack railway station. However, a group of Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel, including assistant sub-inspector Kedareswar Paikray, spotted Akshaya and the boy when the duo was travelling for Sambalpur from Cuttack by a train Wednesday.
Suspecting Akshaya’s behaviour, the RPF team sought details from him regarding the boy and detained him at Talcher. “The RPF team then contacted their counterparts in the city here after he confessed to the crime. On being informed, a four-member team of Kumbharpada police along with Narendra reached Talcher, where Akshaya was arrested. The boy was handed over to his parents,” said Sahu.