india

Updated: Apr 29, 2019 07:38 IST

A 10-year-old boy, kidnapped on late Saturday night from his home in Modinagar, was found murdered around eight kilometers away in Niwari on Sunday.

Police suspect Aditya Bansal, the only son of a businessman, was kidnapped for ransom and later murdered as the suspects feared he would reveal their identities.

According to the police complaint, Aditya, a class VI student, was playing with his friends and cousins outside his house at Manavtapuri locality when two men on a motorcycle arrived and kidnapped him at around 8pm.

The police said that Aditya’s body was recovered from the fields near the forensic science laboratory in Niwari on Sunday morning.

“It seems he was strangled. It seems to be a case of kidnapping for ransom. During initial investigation, we came to know that the boy did not resist the kidnapping, which means that they were likely known to the boy. It is suspected that the kidnappers told the boy that they will be taking him to his father’s shop nearby,” said Neeraj Kumar Jadaun, superintendent of police (rural).

The FIR was lodged by the boy’s uncle around 3am on Sunday after searches by his family and police failed. They were told by the children who were with Aditya that he was taken by the motorcyclists.

“The police launched a search late night and on Sunday morning as well but the boy could not be traced. We were also expecting calls to his family but no ransom call was received. We suspect that the kidnappers killed him after fearing that their identities will be revealed,” the SP said.

Police said that they were scanning CCTV footage from the locality and have picked up several persons for questioning on Sunday afternoon.

The boy’s autopsy was also conducted.

“The boy died due to strangulation and also had a small injury to his leg,” said an officer from the district health department.