Ahmedabad: The 37-day-old boy, allegedly kidnapped from a pavement in New Ranip while his parents slept, was rescued within 38 hours, with the crime branch arresting a 21-year-old woman, a man from Uttar Pradesh and detaining two juveniles in connection with a possible child trafficking racket.
The kidnapping occurred around 3.15am on Oct 2 near a lake in New Ranip, where the child’s parents, who work as construction labourers, were sleeping on a pavement. Crime branch, Sabarmati police and Zone-2 and Zone-3 LCB teams checked CCTV footage and searched train and bus stations and also the airport. Worried by the police operation, the suspects abandoned the baby boy in the same area, police said, adding that the infant was found safe on Oct 3 and handed back to his parents.
The woman seen taking the child in the footage was traced to near Sabarmati railway station, police said. The woman first surveyed the area near Sola Civil Hospital, but abandoned the attempt after finding that her target was a girl, according to police. They woke up to find the child missing, and approached Sabarmati police. During questioning, police learnt that two juveniles from UP had helped her. They were were traced using photographs found on the woman’s phone. She then kidnapped the boy from New Ranip. The man who offered the money to the woman was arrested from Noida by a crime branch team. He is a resident of Badaun. Police are probing the alleged trafficking network and identifying others involved.