Hoysala police rescue abducted businessman

A patrolling Hoysala police team rescued a businessman who had been abducted by a rowdy sheeter at Hennur on Saturday night.

The victim, Irfan Ahmed, from Thanisandra, runs a packing material firm and had been arrested and jailed for 60 days over non-payment of commercial taxes. He was released in January.

“During his time in Parappana Agrahara, he met the accused, Mansoor, rowdy sheeter from Shivaji Nagar who shared the barrack with him. On Saturday, while Irfan was returning from evening prayers from a mosque near his house, Mansoor confronted him in an autorickshaw and asked him to spare ₹1,000 to pay the driver,” said a police officer.

Irfan gave him the money. A few minutes later, Mansoor called Irfan on his mobile phone and set up a meeting at a local shop. The duo bought some cold drinks and sat in the same auto.

“While Irfan was having the drink, Mansoor told Irfan that he had a lot of pending cases against him and the police were on the lookout for him. He asked Irfan to give him ₹2 lakh and his car. The victim refused stating he did not have that much money and the car belonged to his brother,” the sfficer said.

In response, Mansoor began physically attacking Irfan and asked the autorickshaw driver to start driving. He tortured the businessman in the moving autorickshaw, and forced him to give his ATM card pin details, which he used to withdraw ₹14,000.

During the ride, Mansoor forced Irfan to call his brother Ameen Ahmed for the money and the car, and set up a meeting at Ashwath Nagar. However, while they were waiting for the brother, the hoysala police became suspicious when they saw Irfan’s condition. His face was swollen and his shirt stained with blood.

They asked the driver why he had parked the vehicle at an isolated location. “Mansoor told the driver to drive away, but the police gave chase. The auto got stuck in slush and the police caught up with them,” said the police officer. They arrested Mansoor and the auto driver.