India, Jan. 4 -- The Bombay High Court has granted bail to Avinash Anil Dethe, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in a 2014 kidnapping-for-ransom of the then three-year-old son of a businessman from Malad.

A division bench of justice Manish Pitale and justice Manjusha Deshpande passed the order on December 24, noting that the mastermind of the crime, Ajit Apraj, had already been granted bail by the court in August 2022, after it observed apparent non-compliance with statutory requirements while recording confessional statement that formed the basis of the trial court's conviction. The bench also took into account that Dethe has already spent over 11 years in custody.

According to the prosecution, the incident took place...