Delhi man kidnapped after Mathura court hearing rescued; seven held

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) A Delhi-based man who was allegedly abducted after attending a court hearing in Mathura was rescued in Uttar Pradesh, while seven people accused of kidnapping him for a ransom of Rs 1.2 crore were arrested, police said on Friday.

The kidnappers allegedly forced the victim’s family to pay Rs 80,000 but continued demanding more money before the Delhi Police tracked them down in Mathura and rescued the man, police said.

During interrogation, the accused told police that they paid lakhs of rupees to the victim, Rajan Ranjan Mishra, a Burari resident, in 2022 and 2023 after Mishra promised to secure government jobs for them and their relatives.

“When the promised jobs did not materialise, and the money was not returned, several

complaints were lodged against him in Mathura. Mishra was arrested in the cheating case in 2025 and later released on bail,” he said.

Police said the accused allegedly kidnapped him outside the Mathura court on July 23 to recover the money they claimed he owed them when Mishra had travelled to Mathura to attend a hearing in a cheating case registered against him.

“When he failed to return, his wife lodged a missing person’s report at Burari police station the following day,” a senior police officer said. Soon after, she began receiving calls from her husband’s mobile phone.

The callers claimed they had kidnapped him and demanded Rs 1.2 crore for his release, the officer said.

“Following the kidnappers’ instructions, the woman placed Rs 80,000 in cash inside her husband’s Ertiga car and arranged for an app-based driver service to take it to the Yashobhumi Metro station in Dwarka,” the officer said.

He said the kidnappers allegedly collected the money from the vehicle. Despite receiving the money, they allegedly kept demanding more ransom, after which the family informed police.

“A case of kidnapping for ransom was registered, and a special team was formed to trace the victim. Police analysed data from the app-based service, examined CCTV footage and tracked the location of the victim’s mobile phone. The trail first led investigators to a hotel in Gurugram, but the suspects had already fled,” the officer said.

The team eventually traced the victim to a house in the Gopalgarh area of Vrindavan in Mathura on July 29, where he was allegedly being held captive and assaulted.

Police said six accused were arrested from the house while another alleged conspirator was apprehended separately from Mathura city.

Police said they recovered two cars used in the crime along with the victim’s mobile phone, SIM card and ATM card. PTI BM ASD ASD