KOZHIKODE: An expatriate, who had come home from Saudi Arabia recently, was kidnapped at gun point in Koyilandy near Kozhikode by a gang that is suspected to be linked to gold smuggling on Tuesday morning. Police said that as per the complaint, Ashraf (35), who hails from Oorallur, was kidnapped from his residence by a five-member gang who arrived there in a car around 6.30am
Koyilandy inspector of police Sandeepkumar MP said that Ashraf is suspected to have worked as a carrier and the gang involved in gold smuggling had abducted him saying that he had not handed over the smuggled gold to the person for whom it was brought.
As per the statements given by his relatives, a person involved in the kidnapping team had approached Ashraf twice asking for gold. Ashraf had arrived in Kerala in the last week of May. Koyilandy police registered a case on the complaint filed by Ashraf’s brother.
“The gang came to our house early in the morning and one of them pointed a gun at my head asked if I was Ashraf. When I told that Ashraf was sleeping in another room, they went there and carried him to the vehicle. When our mother tried to prevent them from taking him away, they pushed her out of the way and took him,” said Ashraf’s brother Siddique.
Police are looking into reports that Ashraf had a case registered against him in connection with gold smuggling through Kochi airport four years ago. Police have formed a special team headed by Vadakara deputy superintendent of police to investigate the case.
The kidnapping of the expat has taken place at a time when customs and police are inquiring into such cases connected with Karipur international airport.
The spurt in gold smuggling in recent years had spawned an allied criminal activity of quotation gangs engaged in robbing of smuggling gold. There have been a series of such heists in the region and the latest robbery bid of smuggled gold at Ramanattukara had led to a road accident in which five persons of a gang from Cherpulassery were killed recently.
