Palghar, Maharashtra: In a swift and meticulous operation, the Kashimira Police cracked a shocking extortion and kidnapping threat case within 24 hours and arrested a 37-year-old school bus driver who had sent ransom messages to a parent, threatening to kidnap her 14-year-old son.
Complaint Filed After Threat Messages
According to police, on October 24, a woman from Kashigaon, whose son studies at St. Joram School, received multiple WhatsApp messages from an unknown number threatening to kidnap her child unless she paid ₹4 lakh in ransom. Alarmed by the repeated threats and photos of her son sent to her phone, the woman immediately lodged a complaint with the Kashimira Police Station.
How The Police Traced The Accused
The police began technical surveillance to trace the mobile number used for the threat messages. Initial inquiries with the registered owner of the mobile number did not yield any leads.
During further questioning, the complainant revealed that the photo of her son sent by the accused was the same one she had earlier shared with the school bus driver for identification purposes.
Bus Driver Confesses To Crime
Acting on this clue, police summoned the school bus driver for questioning. Upon detailed interrogation, the accused confessed to the crime. He was identified as Sadanand Baburao Patni (37), a resident of Kashimira, Mira Road.
Accused Used Labourer’s SIM Card
Investigations revealed that Patni, who also ran a mobile phone and SIM card shop, had deceitfully obtained an active SIM card from an unsuspecting labourer. Pretending that his own SIM was inactive, he kept the labourer’s active SIM card and used it to send the ransom messages and the child’s photo to the victim’s mother.
Planned To Target More Parents
Police further found that Patni had planned to target three to four other parents of children who travelled on his school bus in a similar manner, threatening them with kidnapping messages in exchange for money. His arrest, police said, averted possible further extortion attempts.
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Case Registered And Investigation On
The accused was arrested on October 26, 2025, and booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Information Technology Act.
Police said the accused is in custody and further investigation is underway to determine if he had attempted similar extortion schemes with other parents.
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