Couple steals newborn boy from Ludhiana civil hospital; held
The accused stole the child to sell him for ₹5 lakh; woman was caught on camera while executing the crime; the child has been handed over to the family
Hours after a couple stole a newborn boy from the civil hospital here on Monday, the police have arrested the two accused and handed over the child to the family.
According to the police, the accused had stolen the newborn to sell it for ₹5 lakh. However, the buyer of the newborn is yet to be traced.
The arrested accused have been identified as Preeti of Bhamian Khurd village and her husband Sahil Kumar.
The child was stolen from the Mother Child Hospital wing of the health facility. The woman was caught on camera while executing the crime.
According to sources, while scanning the CCTVs, the woman was captured while boarding a three-wheeler outside the civil hospital. The registration number of the three-wheeler was captured in the CCTVs. Tracing the vehicle, the police found the clue about the woman.
Sources also said that the woman had fed the newborn milk with the help of a spoon. As the milk was a little warm, the newborn suffered burns on his palate. The couple had taken the newborn to a local doctor also for the treatment.
The accused woman, Preeti, is a nurse at a private hospital, while Kumar is an auto driver.
{{/usCountry}}The accused woman, Preeti, is a nurse at a private hospital, while Kumar is an auto driver.
{{/usCountry}}The Division number 2 police have lodged an FIR against the accused under sections 365 and 34 of the IPC.
{{/usCountry}}The Division number 2 police have lodged an FIR against the accused under sections 365 and 34 of the IPC.
{{/usCountry}}The police also suspect that the accused themselves have two daughters. It is suspected that Preeti had come in contact with the buyer of the newborn at the private hospital where she works as a nurse.
{{/usCountry}}The police also suspect that the accused themselves have two daughters. It is suspected that Preeti had come in contact with the buyer of the newborn at the private hospital where she works as a nurse.
{{/usCountry}}The woman, wearing a tracksuit had stolen the four-day old boy at around 3.15am.
{{/usCountry}}The woman, wearing a tracksuit had stolen the four-day old boy at around 3.15am.
{{/usCountry}}According to eyewitnesses, the woman entered the premises pretending to look up a relative admitted at the hospital. She took the infant in her lap on the pretext of playing with him and suddenly walked away with him.
{{/usCountry}}According to eyewitnesses, the woman entered the premises pretending to look up a relative admitted at the hospital. She took the infant in her lap on the pretext of playing with him and suddenly walked away with him.
{{/usCountry}}Security cameras captured the footage of the woman leaving the hospital with the baby in her arms. Shabnam, mother of the child, immediately raised the alarm, and the police were informed.
Shabnam, who resides in Karabara, had given birth to a male child through Cesarean section after three daughters. She alleged that while stealing the newborn, the accused had sprayed some sedatives in the air following which she went into slumber for a few minutes.
After she gained consciousness, she was shocked when she did not find her son on the bed and raised an alarm. She alleged that the staff at the hospital had started abusing her for being careless.
Commissioner of police Mandeep Singh Sidhu said that as the matter was sensitive and the police swung into action immediately and formed separate teams for the arrest of the accused. In the afternoon, the woman and her husband were traced from Bhamian Kalan and the newborn was rescued.
He added that the woman along with her husband and a 10-year-old daughter had reached the hospital at around 10pm on Sunday. She went to Mother and child hospital posing as a relative of a patient and started enquiring about the newborn male children.
The staff at the civil hospital had asked her to leave, but she managed to stay inside.
Sidhu said that the police are investigating the couple’s past criminal record. He announced a reward for the police team for solving the case within hours.
The incident has raised the issue of safety and security of patients and their kin. A police post has been established inside the civil hospital, but it had no impact.
Senior medical officer (SMO) at civil hospital Dr Deepika Goyal said that the hospital performs more than 300 deliveries every month despite staff crunch.
She said that as the staff is overworked, there must be some laxity by the staff. She will investigate and take action against the staff if found guilty.
