Cops tracked the boy down after he booked an online ticket. (Representational)

A 16-year-old boy in Hyderabad, 'addicted' to the popular online game PUBG, allegedly faked his own kidnapping and sought ransom from his parents after they took away his mobile phone, the police said today.

The teenager went "missing" a few days ago. He told his parents that he was on his way to visit his friend. Later, they reported him missing.

The boy then left for Mumbai. During his journey, he called his mother from a passenger's phone and called his mother. Impersonating another man, he told her that "her son" had been kidnapped and demanded Rs 3 lakh as ransom.

On October 12, the boy came back to Hyderabad and booked an online ticket. His mother got a message about the ticket booking and alerted police. Cops tracked him down.

Police said that the boy, who secured very good marks in his class 10 exams, was not performing well in his studies since he got addicted to PUBG.