Udaipur, April 7: A shocking incident has emerged from Banswara, rajasthan, where a government teacher has turned to crime due to an addiction to Online Gaming. The accused, a Grade II teacher, demanded a ransom of ₹1.40 crore from two traders to settle his mounting debts. However, the police acted swiftly, reviewing over 300 CCTV footages to apprehend the suspect.
According to Superintendent of Police Sudhir Joshi, the accused, Vikesh Kumar, was stationed at the Government Higher Secondary School in Chudada and had been addicted to online gaming for a long time. He lost millions and fell into a debt of approximately ₹80 lakh. To repay his loans, he took out multiple loans in his name, pawned his relatives’ jewelry, and even secured a loan of about ₹30 lakh in his wife’s name.
When his situation spiraled out of control, he devised a plan to pose as a fake gangster and extort money from the traders. The accused conducted reconnaissance on the traders and sent threatening letters on March 30, demanding ₹90 lakh from one trader and ₹50 lakh from another, threatening to harm their families if they failed to comply.
To collect the ransom, he instructed the traders to leave the money under a neem tree in a secluded area of the Bhoyan Valley, ensuring an easy escape for himself.
Following a complaint on March 31, the Rajtalab police examined around 300 CCTV cameras at the city’s entry and exit points. They tracked the suspect’s movements and arrested him from the village of Timba Mahudi in Kushalgarh.
The police are now conducting a thorough investigation into the case, highlighting the dangerous consequences of online gaming addiction and debt.