Kidnapping, murder of NRI: Fellow villager among 2 held

JALANDHAR: Three days after the abduction and murder of an NRI (non-resident Indian) from Kang Sabu, the district's rural police on Tuesday claimed to have solved the case by arresting a man of that village among two people.

Jalandhar Rural senior superintedent of police (SSP) H P S Khakh said that on Sept 14, NRI Mohinder Singh, who lived in Punjab separate from his family in the UK, was abducted from Kang Sahbu's bus stop around 6.15pm while on his way to a gurdwara. "The suspects rear-ended his vehicle and pulled him out before they kidnapped him. Police were quick to file an FIR and arrest accused Harjinder Singh 'Lali' from Nakodar and Manjot Singh 'Jota' from Amritsar, while their getaway car was also recovered.

Superintendent of police Manpreet Singh Dhillon's special investigation team (SIT) studied CCTV footage and witness testimonies to identify the suspects. The SSP said: "The first breakthrough came on Sept 16 with the arrest of Lali in Nakodar. He revealed the crime's motive to be greed. Jota was arrested the next day near Tarsikka in Amritsar district. Police claim to have gathered from them that they had tossed Mohinder's mobile phone into a canal and disposed of even their own sets to dodge the cops."

Mohinder had recognised fellow villager Manjot by his voice behind his covered face, so the kidnappers killed him with a knife and threw his body into a canal outside Moga. Police have roped in the drainage department and state disaster relief force (SDRF) to lower the canal's water level to recover the body.