A businessman was kidnapped by a group of criminals who bound him, blindfolded him, and forced him into a van at gunpoint. They threatened him with violence and held him captive for several hours. The victim’s ordeal came to an end when his colleagues were persuaded to leave £19,000 at a bus stop as a ransom.
The kidnappers, identified as brothers David and Baljit Baghral and their accomplice Shanu Shanu, attacked the victim while he was walking to his car after work in Wolverhampton city center on November 10th of the previous year. They then took him to a shop in Coseley, where he was held against his will and feared for his life.
The trio released the victim after convincing one of his colleagues to drop off the ransom money in a bag at the designated bus stop. They left the victim in the van, which they later claimed had been stolen, and abandoned it in a street in Coseley. Thankfully, the victim managed to escape and called the police for help.
West Midlands Police used various investigative techniques such as CCTV footage, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), and mobile phone data to reconstruct the events. They even discovered a group chat named ‘Robbers Gang’ on Baljit’s phone, which had been created by David two days before the incident. David Baghral was arrested at his home in Genge Road, Lanesfield on October 18th, while Baljit was arrested at Birmingham Airport upon his return from Cyprus.
Shanu Shanu was apprehended at Heathrow Airport on November 18th as he attempted to travel to the United States. During the trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court, the Baghral brothers denied charges of conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to blackmail, and possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. However, they were found guilty, along with Shanu Shanu.
David Baghral, 28, and Baljit Baghral, 33, from Sandwell Road, Birmingham, were both sentenced to 16 years in prison. Shanu Shanu, 22, from Southall, Ealing, who had pleaded guilty to the same charges at the start of the trial, received a sentence of 13 years and four months.
Following the court proceedings, Detective Constable Dan David, from the Major Crime Team of West Midlands Police, stated that the victim had endured a terrifying ordeal that lasted for hours, causing him to fear for his safety and even his life. He further added that the criminals had planned the kidnapping with the intention of extorting a large sum of money, but instead, they now face significant prison sentences.
