Thiruvananthapuram: A Keralite student in Bengaluru, who had been abducted for a ransom, has been found dead near the Rechanahalli lake in the city.
The deceased, identified as N. Sharath, 19, was the son of an income tax officer, and was a second year automobile engineering student in the city.
He had been kidnapped about 10 days ago, and the kidnappers had asked for a ransom of Rs5 million (Dh283,456) in a social media message.
A local daily in Bengaluru had reported the message sent by the victim as, ““Hello Appa, people who suffered because of you have kidnapped me. They want Rs50 lakh [Rs5 million] and they are torturing me a lot. Please arrange the money as soon as possible at any cost.” Whether the message was indeed sent by the victim could not be independently verified.
Reports from Bengaluru say that the youth was kidnapped while he was celebrating his purchase of a new bike. The parents then filed a complaint with the local police.
The central crime branch had been investigating the case following the complaint. According to reports, six persons have been taken into custody in connection with the incident, and that one of them is a friend of Sharath.
Though he had left home to show off his new bike to friends, none of his friends had seen him on the evening that he went missing. It was only when a video was sent to his family on social media, demanding the ransom amount, that family members came to know that he was abducted.
Earlier this month, senior journalist Gauri Lankesh was murdered in Bengaluru when she arrived home from work. A special investigation team inquiring the case has not nabbed the culprits, but reportedly has a facial profile of her attacker.
