Kaithal police have arrested a man for allegedly holding youths hostage and extorting money from their families. Four other accused have already been arrested in the case. The accused allegedly duped youths on the pretext of sending them to the United States and later extorted money from their families by holding the youths hostage.

A police spokesperson said the accused has been identified as Ramesh, a resident of Thua village in Jind district. He was arrested by a team of the Special Detective Unit at the Nepal-Sunauli border while allegedly attempting to re-enter India. He was produced before a local court, which remanded him to four days of police custody.

The spokesperson said a case was registered at Pundri police station on the complaint of Vedpal, a resident of Karora village.

In his complaint, Vedpal alleged that he came into contact with Ramesh in 2018. In February 2021, Ramesh allegedly claimed that he arranged overseas employment and could send Vedpal’s son, Bhupinder, to the United States. He allegedly demanded Rs 42 lakh for the process.

Later, the accused also agreed to arrange travel for Bhupinder and another youth, Rajesh, for a total of Rs 80 lakh, assuring their families that both would reach the US within a month.

The complainant alleged that Ramesh and his wife, Anita, collected money in several instalments, beginning with Rs 5.5 lakh in June 2021, followed by additional payments after claiming that the visas had been approved.

The youths were reportedly taken from Delhi to Kolkata, where they were initially accommodated in a hotel before allegedly being abducted on the pretext of onward travel to the United States.

The complaint further alleged that the accused assaulted the youths, threatened them at gunpoint, and forced them to call their families, falsely claiming that they had safely reached the US, so that the remaining money could be transferred. The family allegedly paid Rs 68.74 lakh.

The spokesperson added that when the complainant later demanded the return of the money, the accused, along with his wife and son, allegedly refused and issued death threats.