Rs 10-crore ransom, staged videos: Trader’s rescue from Odisha police station unearths sinister plot

On August 14, a 62-year-old businessman named Narendra Sahu went missing from Balangir town in Odisha, prompting his family to report him missing to the police. The authorities suspected a kidnapping, leading them to conduct a technical surveillance that took them 337 kilometers away to the state capital, Bhubaneswar. There, they managed to rescue Sahu from an unexpected location – a police station.

Upon arrival at Bhubaneswar police station, four people were arrested, including a woman police sub-inspector, her brother, a self-proclaimed crime reporter, and a local resident from Balangir. The businessman was allegedly lured to Randa Chowk near Balangir town on August 14, where he was kidnapped by Kshitish Chandra Sahu and his associates.

According to police, the victim was taken to Bhubaneswar, forced to pose with a pistol pointed at Kshitish, and filmed in the act. He was also threatened with an Arms case if he didn't pay the demanded ransom of Rs 10 crore. The accused had planned to use fake staged videos and documents to implicate Sahu in an Arms Act case and create false evidence against him.

The investigation revealed that the victim was first confined in a lodge in Bhubaneswar, where the accused assaulted him and took photographs and videos of him holding a pistol. The videos showed the victim posing and apologizing, further contributing to the false narrative. The police also recovered a false FIR copy against the victim, likely written by the journalist to implicate him in an Arms Act case.

The Balangir Superintendent of Police, Abhilash G, explained that the plan was to create an impression that Kshitish was the victim while the actual victim, Narendra Sahu, was the accused. The staged videos were meant to be presented at the Khandagiri police station to further this narrative. The victim's rescue came after a team reached the police station in search of the missing businessman.