It was by tracking phone calls that the police rescued abducted youth Praveen Kumar (27), son of yarn trader Thambidurai of Sengunthapuram, Karur, within 12 hours of the crime, unharmed and without paying ransom.
On being informed about the abduction on Saturday, Karur police swung into action and started tracking calls to Mr Thambidurai.
The cops enquired with Mr Thambidurai if he had any dispute with anybody or if he had any enemies. They also casually enquired if he had received any calls.
This led Mr Thambidurai to recall that Saravanan, hailing from Thoothukudi but owning a gymnasium near Chinna Kongu mandapam in Karur, had made a call to Mr Kumar early in the morning. As his son was bathing, he had answered the call. Saravanan wanted him to ask Mr Kumar to go and meet some of his friends in Thanthonimalai area. Based on this information, the cops secured Saravanan and grilled him, a senior police officer said.
As the police were also tracking calls to Mr Thambidurai, they found a caller ringing up to demand a ransom of Rs80 lakh for releasing Mr Kumar unharmed. They also made a bargain. But, Mr Thambidurai said he was ready to pay only Rs5 lakh. Effective interrogation of Saravanan helped to track down the other abductors.
The police finally nailed the abductors near Thiruvidanthai in Kancheepuram district with the help of the police from that district. They secured car driver Kamalakannan while three others managed to flee, inspector general of police (central zone) Alexander Mohan said. Mr Kumar and Kamalakannan were brought to Karur on Sunday evening.
Of the three who managed to flee, one has been identified as Senthil of Nagercoil, a close relative of Saravanan, while the identity of the other two is yet to be established. The police are on the look-out for the three.