Girl nabbed for seeking 'lift' and 'ransom' along others

Fatehabad, Apr 25 (UNI) Police have nabbed a young girl and her accomplice for 'trapping' a rice mill owner from Jakhal town in this district on pretext of taking a 'lift' and later demanding a ransom of Rs 2.50 lakh from him.

According to police, Rajan Gupta, owner of a rice mill at Jakhal town bordering Punjab, was on his way to Lehra (Punjab) on Monday when a youth Amit asked for a lift in his car.

After covering some distance, Amit requested Gupta to give lift to a young girl, who was ostensibly waiting for some vehicle on the roadside.

Some time later, a Tata Indica car overtook and forced Gupta's vehicle to stop. Two youths emerged out of it and one of them Jasbir Singh, posing as a reader of a senior Punjab police officer, threatened him with police action for trying to seduce the girl.

Rajan then realized that Amit and the girl sitting in his car were also members of the gang blackmailing him. The youths demanded Rs 2.50 lakh for settling the matter.

Rajan took Major Singh, the other accomplice of Jasbir to his mill on the pretext of making payment and after asking him to wait, informed the police. The police arrested Major Singh but as the crime had been committed in Punjab area, handed over the accused to the Punjab police.

The Lehra police station in Punjab, which registered the FIR, yesterday arrested Anita Sharma, a resident of Moonak in Mansa district of Punjab.

Surender Singh, SHO Lehra said it was an organised gang of criminals, which had been involved in such crimes in the past too.

He said that the police has launched a manhunt to nab the other two accused.

UNI