Makhan’s family gets two more threats

SAS Nagar, August 23: The family of Makhan Singh, a resident of Kumbhra village, who has been kidnapped by some unknown persons in South Africa, today again received ransom calls for paying them money in New Delhi, along with the threat that Makhan would be killed otherwise.

The family told Newsline that both the phone calls were from a person who said his name was Wasim Akram. The caller threatened that if the money was not paid today, Makhan would be killed in South Africa.

Meanwhile, the police in South Africa have registered a case against the kidnappers. When contacted by the family, a police official of Durban Police Station, Stanger City, South Africa, Robin Singh told them that a case has been registered against the unknown kidnappers. Makhan Singh had gone to South Africa 11 months back.

On August 15, too, the family got a call to pay Rs 15 lakh as ransom for Makhan or he would be killed. When the family pleaded inability to pay Rs 15 lakh, the kidnappers lowered their demand to Rs 7 lakh, which they wanted to be paid by Monday.

Karam Singh, Makhan Singh’s father, told that he had given a written complaint to the Mohali Police on Monday and the police had only registered a DDR. He said the kidnappers had given an ultimatum to pay the money by Monday, but they had not received any calls yesterday.

However, today, one of the calls was made on Makhan’s friend Sanju’s cell phone, who was told that Makhan would be killed if the money was not paid. The second call was made on the landline phone at Makhan’s residence with the same threat. The family was told to go to Chandni Chowk in Delhi with the money.

Sukhdev Singh, Makhan’s brother, who returned from Delhi yesterday night, said the kidnappers talked in Punjabi and both the telephone numbers from which the calls were made were of South Africa. He said the family made several attempts to call back at the numbers, but no one picked up the phone.