KASUR: Phoolnagar police on Sunday booked five suspects, including two policemen, for allegedly kidnapping a man for ransom and releasing him after extracting Rs0.5 million from his family.

According to the first information report (FIR) lodged on the complaint of Nisara Bibi, mother of the kidnapped man, Ahmed Raza, said her son and his friends Sajid and Noman, were waiting for their two other friends Asad and Javid outside a factory at Dinanath as they had to go to inquire after their common fried Haroon who was injured in a road accident.

Meanwhile, two police constables --Rana Umair and Rana Ali -- arrived there and asked Raza to go with them to the Phoolnagar police station for investigation, without informing him about the charges against him.

When Raza refused, the policemen tortured him, bundled him into a police vehicle and went away.

According to the FIR, near Malanwala bypass, the policemen blind folded Raza and took him to an unidentified place on a motorcycle.

Later, the suspects again subjected Raza to severe torture and demanded Rs1.5 million from his family through Asad, (one of his friends), threatening to kill him in a fake encounter if the amount was not paid.

The complainant claimed in the FIR that the family managed Rs250,000 and gave the amount in cash to Umair, besides transferring an equal amount into his bank account.

After getting Rs0.5 million, the suspects released Raza.

The complainant told the police, the suspects then demanded another Rs200,000 from her, threatening to kill her son.

However, this time Raza’s family brought the matter to the notice of District Police Officer (DPO) Essa Khan, who immediately suspended the suspects from service and ordered registration of a kidnap for ransom case against them under sections 365 A of the PPC, and sections 155 C and, 155 D, 156 of the Police Order 2002.

According to sources, the police have arrested some of the suspects but their names were not being revealed yet.

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2024