Kochi: Ernakulam Town North Police have arrested a five-member gang for allegedly abducting and robbing a man from Maharashtra at gunpoint in Kochi. The accused are Sharun of Nileswaram in Kasaragod district, Aluva native Binas, Joel from Pathanamthitta, Thrikkakkara native Sabir, and Jasreena from Idukki. The incident took place on December 7, 2025.

According to the FIR, the gang waylaid Maharashtra native Chinmay Dattaram Ambre (24) while he was on his way to meet a friend at LB Complex in Ayyappankavu around 9.30 pm. The accused allegedly abducted him in their car after threatening him at gunpoint. The third accused, Joel, assaulted the complainant and hurled abuses at him.

The gang forced Ambre to transfer ₹3,000 twice from his bank account to one of their accounts. After robbing him, they abandoned him in the Palarivattom area. The accused then went into hiding, police said.

They have been booked for abduction, wrongful confinement, criminal intimidation and robbery under Sections 140(1), 127(2), 296(b), 351(3), 115(2), 126(2), 309(3), 309(4) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.

“First accused Sharun was nabbed from Nileswaram on January 21, while the second accused was arrested from Changanassery on January 24. The third, fourth, and fifth accused were taken into custody from Aluva in the last week of December. All have been remanded in judicial custody,” a police official said.

The incident was not reported to the media earlier as all the accused were absconding, the official added.

A team led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Rajkumar investigated the case and arrested all five accused.