COUVA resident Vishnu Lalla, 63, was found dead in some bushes on November 9, just over 24 hours after he was kidnapped from his home, and a $100,000 ransom was demanded.

Lalla's wife told investigators that around 6.50 pm on November 8, she went outside their home in Dairy Lane, Windsor Park, California, to look for him, as he was tending to his animals, when she saw his grey Toyota Hilux speeding away from the property. She received a call about half an hour later from Lalla's phone with an unknown male voice demanding a $100,000 ransom be paid before midnight for his safe return.

Police discovered Lalla's pickup truck destroyed by fire about a 15-minute drive away on George Street in Esperanza, California.