10 fake cops held for abducting jeweller, extorting ₹1.3 cr | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: A real estate dispute allegedly led to the kidnapping of a jewellery businessman, with a gang posing as police personnel which abducted him and demanded ₹15 crore from his family before releasing him for a ransom of ₹1.3 crore, police said. Ten people have been arrested, while two others remain absconding.K Srinivas Rao (53) went missing on Oct 5 while he was on his way to his jewellery shop in Ramanthapur. Following a complaint by his brother-in-law, Chikkadpally police registered a missing person case and launched an investigation. Rao later told police that he was abducted near Golnaka flyover, blindfolded and held captive at an undisclosed location.Investigators suspect the kidnapping was planned by Dumavath Srikanth, the alleged prime conspirator, over a dispute linked to a real estate venture in Hemanagar, Boduppal. Police said Srikanth allegedly conspired with associates in Aug to abduct Rao, settle the dispute and further extort money from his family.The gang allegedly posed as police personnel during the abduction and used vehicles fitted with fake number plates. They frequently switched vehicles to avoid detection while keeping Rao in captivity.Chikkadpally police, in coordination with the Commissioner’s Task Force, arrested 10 people on Saturday. The arrested include Srikanth and Gunjapogu Suresh alias Surya. Officials seized over ₹1 crore in cash, gold ornaments weighing 118 grams, four cars, two two-wheelers and nine mobile phones.According to the officials, some of the arrested accused had previous criminal cases involving cheating, theft, robbery and kidnapping. Srikanth was allegedly involved in multiple cheating cases linked to a construction venture, while Suresh had a history of property offences and alleged involvement in kidnapping-for-ransom cases.Two other accused, including alleged co-conspirator Srinivas Reddy, remain absconding as of Oct 17. Police are trying to trace them and recover the remaining ransom amount. Meanwhile, the arrested accused are being produced before a court for judicial remand, while further investigation is still underway.