Pune: In a swift, late-night operation on Sunday, the Pimpri Chinchwad police rescued a man abducted by a six-member gang that had allegedly plotted to eliminate him to force the withdrawal of a criminal case.Police arrested all six suspects and seized two country-made pistols, sharp weapons, and two vehicles — an SUV and a hatchback — used in the crime. The accused have been identified as Sagar Javale (24), Nitin Thite (27), Saurabh Dhore (28), Ajay Gopale (23), Kunal Chavan (23), and Omkar Korde (24), all residents of Khed taluka. They allegedly abducted the victim, who has a prior criminal record, from Vasul village around 9pm on Sunday.The rescue operation began immediately after the police control room was alerted with the names of two abductors and descriptions of the getaway vehicles. Deputy commissioners of police (crime) Shivaji Pawar and Shweta Khekar (Zone IV) dispatched three specialised teams to track the gang.Following a tip-off that the abductors were heading towards a sports complex in Khed, the police set a trap. “We intercepted the vehicles and nabbed the accused. We successfully rescued the victim and recovered two country-made pistols and two sharp weapons from the suspects,” said an officer from the Pimpri Chinchwad crime branch.Interrogations revealed a deep-seated feud rooted in a previous crime. According to the police, the victim’s cousin was a suspect in the April 2023 murder of Shubham Kale, a close friend of the accused. The victim had been actively working to secure bail for his cousin, which infuriated the gang.The rivalry escalated earlier this year when the gang allegedly opened fire on the victim. Following that incident, the victim lodged a formal complaint with the Khed police. “The accused were pressuring him to withdraw that attempted murder case. When the victim refused to comply, they hatched a plot to abduct and eliminate him,” the officer added.
