Over the last five months, there were four kidnapping for ransom incidents where the capital police managed to recover the victim without any ransom being paid and also arrested the culprits. However, in one strange incident, not only did the police actually help kidnappers escape the clutches of law but also got the kidnappers to pay a ‘ransom’ in exchange for their freedom.

Senior police officers told Dawn that on June 22, a university student left his uncle’s house in Islamabad’s sector D-17 but did not return home. His uncle lodged a complaint with Tarnol police on the same day and a kidnapping case was registered against unidentified persons.

Later, the family received a call from the kidnappers who demanded a ransom of Rs 50 million for the safe release of the young man. An investigation team was constituted by the police who discovered that the victim had first been to Peshawar Mor and later Daman-e-Koh on the day that he was kidnapped.

They also found that the victim was accompanied by another person who had called him before he left the house.

Later, the victim was tracked to Peshawar where police recovered the victim during a raid and arrested three people, including a girl, who were brought to Islamabad for further legal action.

During interrogation, police discovered that the victim had been trapped by the girl who first initiated contact with him over the phone and then later asked to meet him at Peshawar Mor. The two met on June 22 and then together went to Daman-e-Koh where the girl’s accomplices were waiting for them. They kidnapped the young man and took him to Peshawar in a Land Cruiser bearing a police number plate. It was revealed that the kidnappers told the victim that they were officials of the Peshawar police and were after the girl who was wanted for some crimes. They told the youngman that as her accomplice, they will have to arrest him as well.

The police also found out that three other kidnappers, including a girl, were still at large. The SHO Tarnol at the time decided to illegally detain the arrested kidnappers, keeping their arrest off the books till their accomplices had also been arrested.

Twenty days later, a senior police officer found out that meetings had taken place between the victim and some friends of the accused in custody. These meetings had in fact been arranged by the police themselves. He ordered for a formal arrest to be made on August 16. The very next day, the three accused escaped from the lockup at Tarnol police station.

An inquiry was ordered by the then senior superintendent of police (SSP) which found the SHO Tarnol, an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) and a constable guilty of arranging the escape. It was also discovered that after the arrest of the three kidnappers, their friends appraoched the police, the victim, as well as his uncle to try and strike a deal and secure the freedom of the accused. The victim was sent to his father in Dubai and so his own statement in front of a magistrate, necessary for a trial, was not recorded. Meanwhile, meetings were arranged between the victim’s uncle and the friends at the former’s house in D-17 on August 11 and August 14.

A settlement was reached in these meetings and the victim and his family was offered Rs 30 million to drop the case. The police and the friends of the accused also asked the victim to give a statement saying that he was not abducted and in fact left his house of his own will and later returned. However, the victim and his family refused to give the statement as they were afraid of it being used against them.

They did say that they had no objection if the police helped in acquiring an acquittal for the accused. Eventually, the police were offered Rs 6.5 million to help the accused in escaping from lock-up.

On August 17, the friends of the accused submitted a petition in Peshawar High Court against the SSPs of Peshawar and Islamabad and SHO Tarno,l alleging that they were behind the mysterious disappearance of the accused. Police sources said that this petition was submitted in collaboration with the police officials, but was later withdrawn in September.

Police sources also revealed that the ASI had arranged lawyers for both the accused and the plaintiff in a bid to manipulate proceedings.

The victim’s uncle confirmed to Dawn that his nephew had been abducted for ransom and released without payment. He also admitted to meeting the friends of the accused and reaching a settlement with them. However, he denied having taken money from them. “The three men were innocent so we reached a settlement, “he said.

He added that a request was made to the police to quash the case against them. When asked why his nephew had not appeared before a magistrate to record his statement, he said that the boy had left for Dubai to finish his studies there.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2014