New Delhi: A Rs 5,000 UPI transaction helped Delhi Police track down a kidnapper and rescue a 13-year-old boy within three hours of his mother reporting him missing. The accused was arrested after police lured him back to a cybercafe in northeast Delhi's Karawal Nagar to collect the ransom amount.

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The accused, identified as Akash, had allegedly demanded Rs 40,000 from the boy's mother for his release. Police laid a trap using UPI transactions to trace the money trail and identify his location, an officer said on Sunday.

The incident came to light on October 30 when the woman approached Jyoti Nagar police station in Shahdara, reporting that her son had gone out to purchase some items but had not returned.

"She subsequently received a call from an unidentified person demanding Rs 40,000 for his release. A case was registered, and a team was constituted to trace the child and apprehend the accused," the officer said.

During the investigation, the kidnapper contacted the woman again and insisted that the ransom be paid through UPI. He shared a barcode, prompting police to transfer Rs 5,000 using the account of a police personnel to trace the transaction.

"Technical surveillance led the investigators to a cybercafe in Karawal Nagar, where the owner disclosed that a man, accompanied by a minor boy, had used his UPI barcode to receive Rs 5,000 in exchange for a commission of Rs 50," the officer added.

Police subsequently examined the cybercafe's CCTV footage, which helped the woman identify her missing son.

"We then initiated another transaction of Rs 5,000 through the same barcode to lure the accused to come again to the same place," he said.

The accused returned to the cybercafe with the boy to collect the money in cash. Police personnel, with the assistance of the cafe owner, apprehended him and rescued the child safely.

During interrogation, Akash told investigators that he worked as a delivery helper in Sadar Bazar and knew the boy through his cousin. He allegedly lured the child onto his scooter before calling his mother and demanding ransom, police said.

Police recovered Rs 5,000 in cash, the mobile phone allegedly used to make the ransom call and the scooter used in the kidnapping. The cybercafe owner had received Rs 50 as commission for facilitating the transaction.

Police said the accused had no previous criminal involvement. The rescued boy was reunited with his family.

Investigators are also probing whether Akash planned the kidnapping alone or had assistance from others, police added.