IT engineer fakes kidnapping to extort money from family in Lucknow after he loses big on cryptocurrency investment

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Naman Kumar has been accused of orchestrating his own kidnapping in a desperate attempt to extort money from his family. The reason for his drastic actions was the substantial monetary loss he had incurred as a result of cryptocurrency investments.

He used his expertise as an IT worker to assume the role of the 'kidnapper' and utilized a number of voice modulation applications to intimidate his parents. The incident came to light when the man's family contacted the police, filing a complaint at approximately 2 pm on Monday.

The distressed mother claimed that her son had been abducted near KGMU, receiving multiple extortion calls and messages demanding a sum of Rs 20 lakh, all originating from Kumar's own phone.How he was apprehended? Providing insights into the investigation, Additional DCP West, Chiranjeev Nath Sinha, revealed that law enforcement officers scrutinized the content of the messages and calls. The caller, employing WhatsApp as a means of communication, persistently demanded the aforementioned ransom while making ominous references to a past kidnapping incident in Bihar's Rohtas district involving an individual named «Viren.» Sinha disclosed that the perpetrator appeared to have some familiarity with the family's background, particularly their roots in Bihar.

Further technological analysis led the authorities to the Amausi airport, where CCTV footage showed Kumar disembarking from a flight at 10 am. Subsequently, he was observed visiting acquaintances in the intervening period.

Following a meticulous tracking of the engineer's mobile phone location in the Naka Hindola area, an alert was issued. Six undercover police teams discreetly inspected approximately 250 hotels in the vicinity, ensuring minimal