Man arrested for faking his own ‘kidnapping’

PESHAWAR: The counter-terrorism department (CTD) arrested a man on Saturday who faked his own ‘kidnapping’  in order to trick his family into paying ransom.

Resident of Upper Dir, Inamullah, came to Peshawar and rented a room at a hotel in Board Bazaar. Later, he called his brother and pretended to be the kidnapper and demanded Rs1 million for his release.

Read: Missing Hindu woman returns home

Dir police registered an FIR and the CTD traced the call to Inamullah’s hotel room from where he was arrested. He confessed that he planned the whole charade to get money from his family.

Last month, police in Peshawar arrested a schoolgirl for trying to extort money from wealthy men by pretending she was linked to Taliban.

Related: Police arrest schoolgirl over 'Taliban' extortion calls

The 18-year-old girl, identified only as Lubna, was arrested in Peshawar after a trader complained to police.

Furqan Bilal, a senior police official, told AFP the trader said he received a phone call from an “anonymous militant” demanding millions of rupees.