In a first-of-its-kind crime reported within the state capital, 3 individuals, who had held a real-estate businessman captive, used cryptocurrency to take a ransom of Rs 1.3 crore in bitcoins ahead of freeing him.

The topic got here to mild per week after the police arrested the 3 individuals — Sandeep Pratap Singh, Vijay Pratap Singh and Rajveer Singh.

Police mentioned that the arrested accused had been conscious that the sufferer traded in cryptocurrency.

Police have recovered Rs 30,000 in money, a country-made pistol, 3 reside cartridges, 5 cellphones and a automobile from them.

In step with police, the 3 kidnapped Arjun Bhargava of Indraprasth Grand close to Kalindi Park in Vrindavan Yojana, at the pretext of revealing him a plot in Barabanki on August 7.

They held him hostage at a area the place they thrashed him, skilled a pistol on him, and were given Rs 1.3 crore in bitcoins transferred to their account.

DCP (East Zone) Prachi Singh mentioned the kidnappers, who pretended to be genuine property sellers, met Bhargava and took him to Barabanki.

“At the manner, they tied his arms and legs and took him to a area in Barabanki the place they tortured him for 3 hours,” mentioned Singh.

The officer mentioned the sufferer’s spouse, Nidhi Bhargava, mentioned within the FIR that abductors held him at gun level and compelled him to expose the password after which were given all of the bitcoins transferred to their account.

“Additionally they pressured my husband to switch the cash into their checking account and opened fireplace when he resisted it.

Happily, he was once no longer harm. They then introduced him again to Lucknow and dumped him at the roadside,” she mentioned.

DCP Singh mentioned that police had been tipped off by means of an informer in regards to the miscreants who had kidnapped the businessman per week in the past in a automobile bearing the plate of prime courtroom.

“We laid a entice and, on Tuesday, once they visited the Kalindi Park locality almost certainly to assemble more cash from the businessman, we arrested them,” the police reliable mentioned.

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