Trio arrested for murder of 21-year-old sent to judicial custody

Darjeeling: The trio arrested in connection with the abduction and murder of a 21-year-old were produced at the ACJM court in Birpara on Saturday.

A dispute over ownership of an SUV led to alleged abduction and murder of a 21-year-old in Alipurduar district on Friday. One Sahabaz Ali, his uncle Zakir Hussain and friend Ayushman Lohar were charged under sections of the IPC for abduction and murder and produced on Saturday. They were sent to 14 days of judicial custody.

The incident occurred in Singhania Tea Estate under the Birpara police station, Alipurduar on Friday. One Indradeb Suri (21), who was also the owner of a grocery store, had bought an SUV jointly with his friend Ali. Following this, a scuffle had broken out between the two over its ownership.

On Thursday evening at around 5:30 pm, Indradeb was allegedly abducted from Birpara. His family received a ransom call from an unknown number demanding Rs 10 lakh. The police were contacted.

Ali finally broke down during interrogation and confessed to the crime. Indradeb's body was recovered from deep inside Dakshin Khayarbari jungle along with a sharp murder weapon.

"Ali was a good friend of my nephew. They were partners in the vehicle business. At times he used to spend the night at our house also. We could never imagine that he could do such a thing," stated Suresh Suri, uncle of the deceased.

"The modus operandi of the murder has shocked us. Just to mislead us, the prime accused arrived at the police station and started spinning tales," stated Kuntal Bandopadhyay, ASP, Jaigaon.