Chaitanya Tupe reunites with family

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

In a bizarre, Chaitanya Sunil Tupe (7, resident of N-4 Cidco), who was kidnapped for a ransom of Rs 2 crore, returned safely to his mother’s arms on Wednesday evening (at 7 pm). The police rescued him from a cornfield in Brahmpuri village, where he was held by the kidnappers, at 1 pm. The police also arrested all five ransom-seekers involved in the crime.

Kidnappers and their modus operandi

The names of the kidnappers are Dnyaneshwar alias Harshal Pandharinath Shevatre (21), Jeevan Narayan Shevatre (26), Pranav Samadhan Shevatre (19) and Krishna Santosh Pathade (20, All four from Brahmapuri, Tehsil Jafferabad), and Shivraj alias Bunty Vilas Gaikwad (20, Aland).

As reported earlier, on Tuesday (February 4) at 8.45 pm, Sunil Tupe was playing with his two children. While he was playing with his younger son, Chaitanya rode his bicycle towards the N-4 road.

At that moment, a black car approached from behind. The kidnappers stopped the car next to him, and two men jumped out and one lifted Chaitanya and shoved him into the car from the driver's left side. The other one took Chaitanya’s bicycle and threw it across the road to avoid suspicion. Immediately after, the kidnappers sped away towards Hanuman Chowk, taking Chaitanya with them.

A single call made the police swing into action

After the kidnapping, the abductors took Chaitanya through various locations, including Jai Bhavaninagar, Kamgar Chowk, High Court, and Ramgiri, before heading towards Cidco Chowk. From there, they travelled via Phulambri and Palphata and finally stopped at Talegaon on the Rajur Road. At this point, Harshal, who was driving the car, stepped out and made a call to Sunil Tupe, demanding a ransom of Rs 2 crore in Hindi for Chaitanya’s release. Immediately after making the demand, the kidnappers switched off the mobile phone to avoid being tracked.

As soon as this information reached the Commissioner of Police (CP), Pravin Pawar, the entire city police force was mobilised to track down the kidnappers and rescue the child.

Speeding car flipped twice

During the kidnapping, the abductors were drinking alcohol inside the car. While speeding towards Jafferabad via Hasanabad and Bhokardan, their reckless driving led to an accident. At 1 am near Asai Pati, their car crashed into a goods vehicle. Due to the high speed, the car then hit a pole and flipped twice before landing in the field of Sukhdev Jadhav. The vehicle was completely wrecked, but airbags deployed, preventing serious injuries to Chaitanya and the others sitting in the front.

...And the plot unravelled

As soon as the accident occurred, Harshal quickly pulled Chaitanya out of the wrecked car and fled into the darkness along with Jeevan, Bunty, and Krishna. However, Pranav couldn't escape in time and was caught by the car owner, Gajanan Bhavale, and local villagers. Unaware that he was one of the kidnappers, the villagers beat him up before admitting him to Bhokardan Rural Hospital.

Meanwhile, as soon as Bhokardan police received the information, PSI Sagar Shinde and his team rushed to the scene to take control of the situation.

...Raid in the Fields

As soon as information about the Bhokardan accident reached the authorities, Crime Branch police inspector Sandeep Gurme, and PSIs Vishal Bodkhe, and Sandeep Solunke rushed to the hospital. They intensely interrogated Pranav, which led them to Jeevan, Shivraj, and Krishna, who were arrested from their homes.

During questioning, it was revealed that Harshal had taken Chaitanya and was hiding in a maize field near the village. Acting swiftly, the police entered the field, overpowered Harshal, and safely rescued Chaitanya.

By evening, Chaitanya was brought to the Police Commissioner’s office and was finally reunited with his family at 7 pm.