UK-returned graduate held in ₹1 crore ransom plot after boy's body found in SUV boot in Bengaluru

A UK-returned MTech graduate, Wala Bhaskar Reddy, has been arrested in connection with a ransom plot following the discovery of a 13-year-old boy's body in an SUV boot near Chikkajala in Bengaluru. Police suspect the duo planned to abduct the boy and demand a ₹1 crore ransom from his family. The victim, M Prajwal, was a Class VIII student and had lived near Bhaskar's family in Yelahanka.

There was no known dispute between the two families. On Wednesday, Bhaskar approached Prajwal and persuaded him to accompany him in an SUV, promising to purchase firecrackers and teach him driving. After taking Prajwal away, Bhaskar and his associate, Edukondalu, drove him to a secluded location and assaulted him. The boy was later found deceased, with injuries sustained from being struck with a wooden log and hollow bricks.

Police suspect the accused filmed the boy while he was captive, intending to use the footage to demand money. Following the incident, the SUV was involved in multiple collisions, leading to the discovery of the body inside the boot. No hostility between the accused's family and the victim's family has been found. Police are still searching for Edukondalu and are questioning Bhaskar to establish the motive and reconstruct events leading to the boy's death.