MADURAI: Beware of who you make friends with on social media! This would be the lifelong lesson Parthiban derives from his 24-hour captivity, which ended with the city police nabbing the kidnappers on Monday.
Parthiban, an MBA postgraduate, is the son of Raju, a retired military personnel, and Tamilselvi, a retired school teacher. An active user of Facebook, he recently posted a set pictures of a family function at his house. The function, commonly called Visesam, is popular among a community in the area. Friends and relatives contribute money to family during the event. The tally of Parthiban's family during the event was Rs 10 lakh.
Hours after Parthiban posted the pictures, he received a message on Facebook. The messenger claimed to be a former student of his mother's. Overtime, they developed a friendship, and Parthiban shared his vision of doing business. "How much can you invest in business," the friend asked. "`20 lakh," said Parthiban.
Now, the friend, identified as Balamurugan from Solaialagupuram, hatched a plot to kidnap Parthiban and hold him to ransom for Rs 20 lakh. "Balamurugan asked Parthiban to meet him someplace nearby on Saturday night," said police sources.
When Parthiban reached the spot, he was kidnapped and taken to Kovilpatti in Thoothukudi. When Parthiban did not return in the night, Raju rushed lodged a complaint with the Avaniyapuram police station. Later, Raju received a call from Parthiban's mobile phone, during which the caller demanded a ransom to release his son. Initially, Raju believed it was prank and but realized the danger after receiving the second call. Again, he alerted the police.
City Commissioner of Police S Davidson Devasirvatham formed three special teams under Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Sasi Mohan to rescue Parthiban.
Initially, the kidnappers demanded Rs 20 lakh but reduced the sum to Rs 15 lakh after negotiations. They changed the drop location four times. Finally, they asked Tamilselvi to come alone in an auto and wait for them. A team of police also followed Tamilselvi in a separate vehicle.
When the kidnappers came to collect the money on Semburani Road, they were nabbed by the police. The kidnappers were identified as R Saravanan of TNHB Colony in Melaanupanadi and C Murugan (21) of Villapuram. Balamurugan was nabbed by another special team.
A senior police officer said that the associates were supposed to call Balamurugan to confirm the receipt of money, and only after that would Parthiban be released. The police made the associates call up Balamurugan to confirm the receipt and Parthiban was released. Later, Balamurugan was arrested based on tower location.