Police found the body of an abducted bank manager from Koderma dam in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh district on Wednesday, a day after a trader who had been kidnapped from Muzaffarpur was found shot dead.

The body of Jaivardhan Kumar (35) was discovered on the basis of information given by his three abductors whom the Nalanda police arrested on Tuesday. Jaivardhan was kidnapped from the border of Nalanda and Sheikhpura districts on September 27, and his abductors told the police he was killed that very day.

Nalanda superintendent of police (SP) Sudhir Kumar Porika said Jaivardhan, manager of Bihar Kshetriya Gramin Bank, was taken hostage when he was returning to his native village Bargaon in Nalanda district from his office in neighbouring Sheikhpura district on a motorcycle.

His relatives had lodged a kidnapping case with the Rajgir police station in Nalanda district, around 109km south of Patna. Initially the police picked up one Subodh Kumar, who revealed the names of his three associates, Chandan Kumar, Bittu Kumar and Krishna Kumar, all residents of Nalanda district.

On Tuesday, the police nabbed the trio, who revealed that the bank manager was taken to Koderma dam in a car and murdered. “He was killed due to police pressure on the members of the gang,” an investigating officer quoted the arrested kidnappers as saying.

The car which was used in the crime has been seized by the police.

Nalanda SP Porika said the victim’s mobile phone and other belongings were recovered from Nawada district three days ago, and that prima facie the incident appeared to be a case of kidnapping for ransom. “But the police are probing the case from other possible angles also,” he told The Telegraph over phone.

Jaivardhan had recently taken a petrol pump on lease from a local resident. In addition, he had earned the wrath of some residents of his native village.

The SP claimed that the mastermind behind the crime has been identified. “Raids are underway to nab him. His arrest will throw more light on the incident. One of the four arrested persons has criminal antecedents,” he added.

As news about the murder spread, a number of residents reached Kargil Chowk under Dipnagar police station in Nalanda district and shut down traffic on the Nawada-Biharsharif road. Senior police officers rushed to the spot to pacify the protesters.

Police said the last location of the bank manager was tracked to a place near Kharat Mor on the border of Nalanda and Sheikhpura districts. The family members claimed that the kidnappers had demanded ransom and warned them against seeking police help.

On Tuesday, Union minister and RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha had met the family members of Jaivardhan and assured all possible help.

On Wednesday, Kushwaha tweeted in Hindi: “Yesterday, the body of a kidnapped businessman was found in a pond and today the body of a businessman who was kidnapped from Nalanda was found in the forest of Koderma. It seems NOTA will get the majority in the next Assembly election in Bihar.”

Jaivardhan is the second bank manager to have been murdered in Bihar in four months.

In May, a 31-year-old manager of Bank of Baroda, Alok Chandra, was gunned down in Jehanabad district.

A total of 82 cases of kidnap and murder and 27 cases of kidnapping for ransom were recorded in the state between January and June this year, up from 44 and 21 such cases respectively during the corresponding period last year.