Mumbai: Cops stop car, find naked realtor in boot

Mumbai: Whatever the make and model of the car, the boot isn't the most comfortable place to travel. Take it from Samit Ghangade. The 29-year-old real estate agent from Versova was abducted and being taken to Navi Mumbai by four men when the Nehru Nagar police intercepted the vehicle and nabbed the abductors.

As cops at the nakabandi stopped the abductors and approached the car, they heard knocks from the boot of the vehicle, where the perpetrators had locked the victim after stripping him.

"When we got close to the vehicle, we heard some sounds from the boot. We then asked the four men to open it and found Ghangade. We have handed over the miscreants to Versova police as the abduction had taken place there," said API Shivaji Arande from Nehru Nagar police station.

Realty bites

According to the police, the victim, a resident of Four Bungalows, Andheri (West) had taken Rs 1.50 lakh from the main accused Pramod Jadhav on the pretext of solving his SRA flat problem. For the past eight months, Jadhav, an employee of a car dealership had been asking Ghangade to return the money but the latter was offering sundry excuses, cops said.

Cops said on Sunday night, Jadhav called up Ghangade and asked him to come to his building reception to talk about the money. Ghangade was confident he would think up a subterfuge and get away.

However, Jadhav had brought a car from his showroom that had come for servicing and had also hired three men to abduct Ghangade.

When the victim came out of his building, the four grabbed him and shoved him in the boot of the vehicle after stripping him and tying his hands. They then set out for Navi Mumbai where the accused had plans to threaten the realtor and recover the money.

"Their scheme came to nought when they saw a naakabandi at Nehru Nagar. The abductors reached the spot at 3am but panicked after spotting a police van. The four left the car in haste and began walking away briskly. Finding their movements suspicious, the police team at the spot followed them and nabbed them a while later," said PSI Riyaz Kazi, from Versova police station.

Jadhav and the other three - identified as Nilesh Kadam, Amit Nikam and Mangesh Gadegaonkar - have been arrested for abducting and threatening the victim. "We will present them in court on Tuesday," added Kazi.