Chandigarh March 24:
In the end, five-year-old Khushpreet’s kidnappers-cum-killers were found up by what in intelligence jargon worldwide is classified as Techint or Technical Intelligence.
The prime accused, Sukhdev Singh, alias Billa, made the “mistake” of calling his brother, Gurvinder Singh, an accomplice, from his mobile phone either just before or soon after he had finished making a ransom call from various STD booths — at least five — located in and around Chandigarh.
After careful scrutiny and analysis lasting several days of hundreds of mobile numbers obtained from mobile towers located near the STD booths from where ransom calls were made, the police detected a specific phone number common to the area immediately around the five STD booths that coincided with the time when the ransom calls were made. That number turned out to be that of Sukhdev. A follow-up analysis then revealed that Sukhdev had each time placed a call to a specific number, which turned out to be that of his brother Gurvinder Singh.
This led to the police zeroing in on Sukhdev and his brother Gurvinder, thus providing them with the much-sought-after breakthrough in what was seeming to be a blind case. While the first ransom call was made from an STD PCO in Kajheri on December 21, the day when Khushi was kidnapped, the second ransom call was made from an STD PCO in Colony number 5. The third call to the family was made from an STD PCO in Phase 8 in Mohali the next morning on December 22 and the fourth call from an STD PCO in Landran.
It then came to light that Sukhdev Singh used to ask his brother and co-accused Gurvinder Singh about the “well-being” of Khushpreet, who was kept in custody at their house before entering the STD booth every time he made the ransom call to Khushpreet’s uncle. After the police found that calls were exchanged between the two numbers near every STD PCO from where he made the ransom calls, they verified the numbers, which turned out to be belonging to the two brothers who lived 50 metres from Khushpreet’s house in Burail. The police then narrowed on the duo and their involvement was later confirmed after the police procured additional evidence from their residence.
Rs 1.8 lakh debt was paid only the next day: Sukhdev Singh, who collected the ransom amount of Rs 4 lakh on December 22, cleared his pending electricity bill worth Rs 23,000 and paid Rs 80,000 to his contractor that had been pending. He told the police that, in all, he paid Rs 1.8 lakh as debt to various people the day after he received the ransom money. The police is checking whether Sukhdev had paid money to about 25 persons to whom he owed money
Child was made to watch cartoons to console him: While he was fed mostly on chips and biscuits for 12 days when he was in custody of Sukhdev and before he was killed, Khushpreet used to often weep when he was awake. The accused Sukhdev, who would keep his face covered, used to then turn on the TV and engage Khushpreet in his favourite cartoons.
Third accused paid merely Rs 50: Absconding accused labourer, Nand Kishore, was paid a “mere” Rs 50 for assisting Sukhdev and Gurvinder in keeping the child confined. While he is yet to be arrested, the two told the police that Nand Kishore was made a party at a later stage.
In the end, five-year-old Khushpreet’s kidnappers-cum-killers were found up by what in intelligence jargon worldwide is classified as Techint or Technical Intelligence.
The prime accused, Sukhdev Singh, alias Billa, made the “mistake” of calling his brother, Gurvinder Singh, an accomplice, from his mobile phone either just before or soon after he had finished making a ransom call from various STD booths — at least five — located in and around Chandigarh.
After careful scrutiny and analysis lasting several days of hundreds of mobile numbers obtained from mobile towers located near the STD booths from where ransom calls were made, the police detected a specific phone number common to the area immediately around the five STD booths that coincided with the time when the ransom calls were made. That number turned out to be that of Sukhdev. A follow-up analysis then revealed that Sukhdev had each time placed a call to a specific number, which turned out to be that of his brother Gurvinder Singh.
This led to the police zeroing in on Sukhdev and his brother Gurvinder, thus providing them with the much-sought-after breakthrough in what was seeming to be a blind case. While the first ransom call was made from an STD PCO in Kajheri on December 21, the day when Khushi was kidnapped, the second ransom call was made from an STD PCO in Colony number 5. The third call to the family was made from an STD PCO in Phase 8 in Mohali the next morning on December 22 and the fourth call from an STD PCO in Landran.
It then came to light that Sukhdev Singh used to ask his brother and co-accused Gurvinder Singh about the “well-being” of Khushpreet, who was kept in custody at their house before entering the STD booth every time he made the ransom call to Khushpreet’s uncle. After the police found that calls were exchanged between the two numbers near every STD PCO from where he made the ransom calls, they verified the numbers, which turned out to be belonging to the two brothers who lived 50 metres from Khushpreet’s house in Burail. The police then narrowed on the duo and their involvement was later confirmed after the police procured additional evidence from their residence.
Rs 1.8 lakh debt was paid only the next day: Sukhdev Singh, who collected the ransom amount of Rs 4 lakh on December 22, cleared his pending electricity bill worth Rs 23,000 and paid Rs 80,000 to his contractor that had been pending. He told the police that, in all, he paid Rs 1.8 lakh as debt to various people the day after he received the ransom money. The police is checking whether Sukhdev had paid money to about 25 persons to whom he owed money
Child was made to watch cartoons to console him: While he was fed mostly on chips and biscuits for 12 days when he was in custody of Sukhdev and before he was killed, Khushpreet used to often weep when he was awake. The accused Sukhdev, who would keep his face covered, used to then turn on the TV and engage Khushpreet in his favourite cartoons.
Third accused paid merely Rs 50: Absconding accused labourer, Nand Kishore, was paid a “mere” Rs 50 for assisting Sukhdev and Gurvinder in keeping the child confined. While he is yet to be arrested, the two told the police that Nand Kishore was made a party at a later stage.
