Man uses AI to research murder tips, gets nabbed for abduction and murder of 10-year-old in Gorakhpur

UP Police arrested a 36-year-old man from Gorakhpur, for the alleged abduction and murder of a 10 year old. The accused, identified as Sarvesh alias Bittu Bhatt, used AI to research for tips and tricks for the alleged abduction and murder on Wednesday, July 29. 

The victim, identified as Vaibhav Verma was a Class 4 student and grandson of jeweller Laxmi Narayan Verma. The boy had gone missing on Monday, July 27, in the afternoon while returning home from school.

Police said that the CCTV footage showed the boy walking with his neighbour, Sarvesh, a computer teacher, leading to the suspect's detention.

During questioning, Sarvesh allegedly admitted that he was under severe financial pressure from liabilities of about Rs 36 lakh, including a Rs 25 lakh loan from a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) and Rs 11 lakh borrowed from a friend. The police revealed that the accused had demanded Rs 1 crore ransom to pay off his debts.

UP Police said the accused had used AI tools to research extortion methods allegedly linked to gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's network and had bought a Cambodia-based mobile number online to set up a WhatsApp account for making ransom calls.

Investigators said the accused lured the child with the promise of a gift and took him to a nearby field, and strangled him after he began shouting. He then allegedly stuffed the body into a sack and hid it in the basement of his house, and called the family demanding Rs 1 crore as ransom.

Superintendent of Police (South) Dinesh Puri said officers recovered the accused's phone, which allegedly contained AI-generated searches related to ransom collection and criminal gang activity.

The child's body was recovered Tuesday, July 28, and a post-mortem report confirmed the death by strangulation, police stated, as reported by PTI.

 (With inputs from PTI)