The Delhi Police on Thursday arrested a 26-year-old man for allegedly abducting and murdering a Delhi University student he had met via a dating application, The Hindu reported. The victim’s family had reported 20-year-old Ayush Nautiyal missing after he failed to return from college on March 22. His body was found in a drain in Dwarka Sector 13 six days later.
The police identified the accused as a former student of a fashion institute, Ishtiyaq Ali. He was arrested in Uttam Nagar. Nautiyal’s family said that the accused had sent them several photos of the student, injured and gagged, via WhatsApp and demanded Rs 50 lakh in exchange for his release.
Joint Commissioner of Police (New Delhi Range) Ajay Chaudhary said the accused and the victim had met for the first time 10 days ago. “They met thrice,” Chaudhary told The Hindu. “On March 21, they met in a restaurant in Dwarka Sector 13. The CCTV footage of the meeting was examined.” Chaudhury said the accused murdered Nautiyal on the day of the abduction but sent the ransom message to divert attention from his crime.
Nautiyal’s family, however, accused the police of not doing enough to rescue the victim, NDTV reported. They had reportedly negotiated with the kidnapper to reduce the ransom amount to Rs 10 lakh but the accused did not turn up to receive the money. We believe it was our mistake to seek help from the police, The Pioneer quoted an unidentified member of Nautiyal’s family as saying. “They knew about the exact house in Mahavir Enclave where our son was held hostage for the past many days and yet the police just sat on the case.”
The case follows the kidnapping of a Class 1 student from Delhi’s Dilshad Garden locality on January 25.
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