Hyderabad: Series about theft in Spain. Although Money Heist was not inspired by true events, it has motivated thieves in Hyderabad. Four members reportedly committed abduction and a half-dozen additional crimes, taking a page from the blockbuster Netflix web series.

On Tuesday, the Asifnagar police broke up the abduction group and detained four of its members.

All four suspects, G Suresh (27), a kingpin and driver from Attapur, M Rohit (18), Jagadish (25), and K Kunal (19), all private employees from Mehdipatnam, were detained. Swetha Chary, aka Sweety, from Jagadgirigutta, is the missing suspect.

Suresh, the brother of a burglar named G Sudhakar, has been conducting burglaries since 2011 and has been charged with 14 counts. He was last captured and imprisoned by the Miyapur police in December 2019. After being freed in February 2020, he proceeded to commit crimes.

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Suresh was allegedly inspired by the famous Netflix series "Money Heist," in which the main character, a professor, recruited others to commit various crimes. In August 2021, the accused decided to hire individuals, including women, to kidnap people for ransom and bought a secondhand car.

"He targeted people in his friends’ circle by inducing them and laying traps with the help of hired girls. They sent the victims voice messages and text messages on WhatsApp and Instagram. They asked the victims to meet at convenient places to execute the plan," said C V Anand, Police Commissioner, Hyderabad.

When the intended victim arrived at the place, the gang would abduct him and transport him to an undisclosed location.

"While kidnapping, to hide their identity, they wore masks and also covered the victim’s face. Suresh used the victim’s mobile phone to make a WhatsApp call to the family members and demand ransom. To avoid police tracking, he kept his mobile phone in flight mode and used the Wi-Fi hot spot of other gang members," Anand said.

Suresh intimidated the person in custody from approaching the police after obtaining money from the victim's relatives and then letting them go. Because the victims were enticed and ensnared by women, they seldom reported the crime to the authorities. Taking advantage of the situation, the gang continued to kidnap others.

The gang was implicated in kidnappings in Langar Houz, Jeedimetla, Tenali Rural, Asifnagar, Rajendranagar, and Sadashivpet, among other places.