2 held for kidnapping, robbing editor of regional paper

Sleuths from the crime branch's Antop Hill unit recently arrested two people on charges of kidnapping the editor of a regional newspaper and robbing him of Rs 49,500 in cash on November 29. The accused have told the police that the editor had pushed one of them, which provoked them to commit the crime.

According to Sadanand Date, the joint commissioner of police (crime), the complainant was having snacks at a food joint near Dadar TT on November 29 when two people approached him, assaulted him and forcibly made him sit in a taxi. The duo then threatened him using a revolver and snatched his bag containing cash.

The accused took away the victim's identity card and abandoned him in Chembur. The victim then lodged a complaint with the Matunga police. A case of kidnapping and robbery was then registered against unknown people. The crime branch also initiated a parallel probe into the matter.

"We had information about the registration number of the taxi in which the victim was kidnapped but no details of the vehicle were available with the Andheri regional transport office. We then questioned around 250 taxi drivers and managed to trace the actual driver," said deputy commissioner of police, detection, Dhananjay Kulkarni.

The taxi driver told the police that after abandoning the victim at Chembur, the accused got down at Wadala. "Based on the information, we traced the two accused, who admitted that they had committed the offence as victim had given one of them a slight push, which had provoked them," said a police officer.