Two more arrested over Malayalam actress kidnapping

Kochi: Two more persons who were involved in the kidnapping of a popular Malayalam film actress have been arrested, Kerala Police said on Sunday.

The two were arrested in Coimbatore on Saturday night.

The popular actress was abducted for a while on her way from Thrissur to Kochi on Friday night by some people, who reportedly took pictures of her to blackmail her.

Her former driver is a suspect in the case and has been taken into custody, soon after the actress told about her harrowing experience to actor-cum-director Lal, who informed the police after hearing her tale of the abduction.

While the victim`s statement has now been recorded before a magistrate, the police probe team has zeroed down on six others who were in the gang, of which three have been already identified, while three others are yet to be identified.

Police chief Loknath Behra on Saturday claimed that they have identified those behind the "kidnap" of the actress and it is a matter of time before the entire gang is arrested.

Veteran producer Suresh Kumar whose wife, Maneka, a yesteryear actress, said that his wife too had a similar experience a few years ago at Kochi, when the prime suspect in the present case - Sunil, a driver in the film industry, chased her vehicle for some time.

"I did raise a complaint, but nothing happened," said Kumar to the media.