22 April,2011 06:21 AM IST | | Shiva Devnath
After the success of the Karnit Shah case, Crime Branch officialsu00a0 rescue three-yr-old Sufian Khan who was abducted from Dindoshi
Riding high on the success of solving the Karnit Shah case, and finding the six-year-old in Uttar Pradesh, the police achieved yet another success by rescuing three-year-old Sufian Khan from Silvasa yesterday morning in 48 hours. Similar to the case of Karnit Shah, Sufian was kidnapped from outside his grandmother's home at Dindoshi while he was playing. The kidnappers then took him to Silvasa, 200 km away from the city. Anxious for their child's safety, Sufian's parents filed a complaint at the Dindoshi police station on April 19.
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In safe hands: Joint Commissioner of Police Himanshu Roy holds
Sufian Khan after rescuing him from his abductors.
Officials from the Crime Branch told MiD DAY that on April 20, Sufian's father received a SMS saying, "Tere beta mere pass hain" and demanded for a ransom of Rs 7 lakh. Wasting no time, under the leadership of Joint Commissioner of Police Himanshu Roy, the Crime Branch team latched on to the mobile number and traced their position.
A team of officers was immediately dispatched to the Union Territory of Silvasa, near Daman, and a massive manhunt was launched for the child. The cops also asked people in the area, if they had seen a man with a small child. One of the eye witnesses pointed the cops to a place where a certain Salman Sheikh was, one of the suspects. The crime branch team surrounded the neighbourhood to ensure that the culprit did not escape.
An official from the Crime Branch said, "We worked around the clock and found Sufian within 48 hours of him going missing." During questioning, Salman told the police that he had picked up Sufian from outside his grandmother's home, a fact that was confirmed by Roy. The suspect also revealed that he was inspired by the kidnapping of Karnit.
Modus operandi
Crime Branch officials also revealed that underworld gangs have taken an entirely new approach to kidnapping and are looking for those who have no criminal background. The gangs are delegating individual responsibilities to each person involved in the kidnapping. While one is assigned with the task of lifting the child, another is asked to look after the child till the ransom is paid.
According to a senior officer, the kidnappers are not hard core gangsters. They are men who come together to hatch a plot so that they can earn easy money. "These men are lured by easy money. The men think they are not committing any crime if they are not killing the child, said the officer. He added, "In Karnit's case and in the case of the Dindoshi kidnapping, the culprits have been identified as small time mechanics or delivery men with no criminal background."u00a0
Specialisations
In a group committing a kidnapping, the 'caller' is considered to be the boldest. He is expected to issue threats and negotiate with the family members. The other difficult job is that of the man who takes care of the child. He can demand Rs 10,000 to Rs 1 lakh.
