Brothers jailed for kidnap after collecting thousands of pounds in cash ransom from bus stop

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Police found the brothers, Baljit (L) and David Baghral had set up a group chat called 'Robbers Gang' on their phones Credit: West Midlands Police

Two brothers and their accomplice have been jailed after kidnapping a businessman and holding him to ransom until thousands of pounds in cash was left in a bag at a bus stop in return for his release.

Baljit Baghral and his brother David, along with Shanu Shanu, ambushed their victim in Wolverhampton city centre as he walked to his car after work in November last year.

They forced him into the back of a van, bound and blindfolded him, and drove him to a shop in Coseley, Dudley. They then threatened him with violence and held a gun to his head.

They held him for a couple of hours, until the men had persuaded a work colleague of the victim to leave a bag containing £19,000 at a bus stop as a ransom.

The men left their victim in the van in a street, where he managed to escape and call the police. The men later claimed the van was stolen.

Detectives from West Midlands Police then used CCTV, Automated Number Plate Recognition cameras and mobile phone data to determine what had happened.

When they traced the events to the brothers, they even found a group chat on Baljit's phone named "Robbers Gang", which David had created two days before the kidnap.

Shanu Shanu was involved in the kidnapping Credit: West Midlands Police

David Baghral was arrested at his home in Lanesfield a week later, while his brother Baljit was detained at Birmingham Airport on the same day, having returned from Cyprus.

Their accomplice Shanu Sahnu was also arrested on the same day at Heathrow Airport in London as he tried to flee to the USA.

David, 28, and Baljit Baghral, 33, both from Birmingham, both denied conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to blackmail and possession of imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

But they were found guilty after a trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court last month. and they've now both been jailed for 16 years.

Sahnu Shanu, 22 from Ealing, admitted the same charges at the start of the trial. He's been jailed for 13 years and four months.

Detective Constable Dan David, from West Midlands Police, said; "These men subjected their victim to a terrifying ordeal which lasted for hours and left him fearing for his safety and even his life.

"They planned this venture with the sole purpose of extracting a large sum of money but instead they now face a significant amount of time in jail."