Man, accused of kidnapping girl, arrested

DHENKANAL: A man, accused of kidnapping a three-year-old girl from Dhenkanal town was arrested late on Friday night from Rengali in Angul district.

The accused, Ranjan Sahoo, a native of Jajpur district, had been staying at Rengali for the last few years years. He had demanded a ransom of Rs 2 lakh from the parents of the child.

Dhenkanal Town IIC Prabhat Sahoo said one Premalata Rana (30) had lodged a complaint stating her child was kidnapped from her home on Friday. Premalata, a native of Badamba in Cuttack, works as a daily wager in Dhenkanal town.

The IIC said Ranjan had called Premalata’s neighbour demanding the ransom. He claimed to have sold the child to a man in Cuttack who if not paid the ransom amount, had threatened to kill her. Police traced the accused’s mobile phone and he was traced to Rengali.