PUNE: The Lonikhand police have booked 10 men for allegedly abducting a 28-year-old pickup van driver near Jagtap dairy on the Ahmednagar-Pune highway around 1.40 am on Monday.
According to the police, the victim is a native of Hathvan village in Mantha taluka of Jalna district. The motive behind the abduction is yet to be ascertained, police said and added that efforts are on to rescue the victim.
"The van driver and four others were on their way to Katraj from Ahmednagar to pickup goods, which were to be delivered in Nashik. As the van approached Jagtap dairy, three men on a bike signalled the van to stop, claiming that the diesel tank of the van was leaking," said senior inspector Vishwajeet Kaingade on Tuesday.
Kaingade said as the van stopped, the trio abused and assaulted the victim. "Later, a group of seven men arrived there in two cars and forcefully pushed the victim into one of the vehicles and drove away towards Ahmednagar. The four men travelling with the victim did not resist the abductors," he added.
One of the men who was travelling with the victim and is an eyewitnesses, a 23-year-old youth from Jalna, drove the pickup van to the police station and reported the incident to the police. "The motive behind the abduction could not be established immediately," Kaingade said and added that the victim's family has been contacted. "The victim's family have given us some leads, which we are using to trace the victim," the officer added.
"We are exploring various motives like personal enmity, illicit relation and money and are questioning people known to the victim and the complainant," Kaingade said.
Police teams have been sent to various places in a bid to trace the victim. "We hope to crack the case at the earliest," the officer added.
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