Umesh Marpalli

Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (EP)

Udupi, Aug 2: Four young men robbed the driver of car whom they hired from Udupi bus stand to go to Koppa in Chikkamagaluru district on Monday evening, August 1. Then they also fled with the car leaving the driver abandoned.

Two young men came to Manipal Rajiv Nagara resident Shankar Acharya on Monday and said that they have to immediately go to Koppa after completing pipeline work at Mangaluru. “We have sent our work tools in VRL bus which will reach there tomorrow. Therefore we should go there soon,” they said agreeing to pay at the rate of Rs 10 per kilometre. They left from service bus stand at 4 pm. Two more youth boarded the car from city bus stand later.

The youth were stopping the car at several places on the way saying that they felt like vomiting. However the car driver did not get down from the car at any point.

When the car was about ten kilometres away from the destination, one youth in the car said that he wanted to vomit. Meanwhile another youth got down from the car and after looking at the youth who was vomiting told Shankar that the youth was vomiting blood and asked him to come soon. When Shankar got down from the car, the men rolled cloth around Shankar’s face, and threatened him pointing a knife at him.

Shankar pleaded not to hurt him saying he has wife and children and promised to give the money that he had with him. However the group did not listen to him. They assaulted him and took away his purse and mobile, pushed him to the nearby fields and fled with the car.

Later Shankar went to Koppa rural police station and complained about the robbery of belonging and car.