MUMBAI: Unable to repay debts, a departmental store manager faked his own abduction and demanded a ransom of Rs 5 lakh from his family. Jitendra Joshi (27) even sent them a video clip that showed him “in captivity”. But he hadn’t imagined that his family would go straight to the police. Within 24 hours, Bangur Nagar police located Jitendra Joshi and arrested him on extortion charges. “Joshi had taken several loans from financial institutions as well as private individuals that he was unable to repay. His father and brother jointly run a milk supply business. He was convinced they would worry on learning of his abduction and would pay up,” said ACP Renuka Bagade.
Around 11. 30pm on Tuesday, Joshi completed his shift at the Malad store but did not head home. His wife received a WhatsApp call from his number around 2am. The caller said if the family wanted Joshi to be safe, they should pay up Rs 5 l akh by 7pm on Wednesday. He warned that if the police were informed, Joshi’s life would be in danger.
Joshi’s family rushed to Dahisar police station, which was nearest to their home. They were directed to the Bangur Nagar police station in Malad in whose jurisdiction Joshi’s workplace was located. In the meanwhile, his wife received a video clip that showed him lying on the floor with his arms and legs bound.
“Joshi’s family reached the Bangur Nagar police station around 5 am. Our teams then studied surveillance footage from close to a hundred cameras,” said DCP Ajay Bansal. In one of the CCTV grabs, cops spotted Joshi on a bike with someone.
Joshi had kept his phone off throughout as he knew the cops would be tracking the device. While his family was worrying about his safety, he was moving around between Malad and Andheri. The plan was to make a second call to his family if they d id not bring the ransom by 5pm to Malad. The police found his subordinate who led them to Joshi.
Around 11. 30pm on Tuesday, Joshi completed his shift at the Malad store but did not head home. His wife received a WhatsApp call from his number around 2am. The caller said if the family wanted Joshi to be safe, they should pay up Rs 5 l akh by 7pm on Wednesday. He warned that if the police were informed, Joshi’s life would be in danger.
Joshi’s family rushed to Dahisar police station, which was nearest to their home. They were directed to the Bangur Nagar police station in Malad in whose jurisdiction Joshi’s workplace was located. In the meanwhile, his wife received a video clip that showed him lying on the floor with his arms and legs bound.
“Joshi’s family reached the Bangur Nagar police station around 5 am. Our teams then studied surveillance footage from close to a hundred cameras,” said DCP Ajay Bansal. In one of the CCTV grabs, cops spotted Joshi on a bike with someone.
Joshi had kept his phone off throughout as he knew the cops would be tracking the device. While his family was worrying about his safety, he was moving around between Malad and Andheri. The plan was to make a second call to his family if they d id not bring the ransom by 5pm to Malad. The police found his subordinate who led them to Joshi.