Infant kidnapped from Delhi footpath by two minors, sold to childless couple for ₹20,000

Police said the infant was sleeping next to his parents, who are slum-dwellers, when two 16-year-old boys allegedly picked him up and fled on a stolen scooter

The Delhi Police on Thursday said they safely rescued a 27-day-old infant who was allegedly kidnapped 22 days ago from a footpath under the Subhash Nagar Metro station in west Delhi by two minor boys and sold to a childless couple in Uttam Nagar for ₹20,000 through a woman living in their neighbourhood.

During questioning, Maya told the police she had handed the baby over to a childless couple living in her Uttam Nagar neighbourhood. The couple, who had paid the amount to Maya, were aware that the baby had been kidnapped, the DCP said. (Representational image)

Police said the infant was sleeping next to his parents, who are slum-dwellers, when two 16-year-old boys allegedly picked him up and fled on a stolen scooter. The childless couple, their neighbour were arrested and the two minors apprehended and booked for kidnapping and baby trafficking.

The couple was identified as 36-year-old Shubh Karan Yadav, a building painter, and his 27-year-old wife Sanyogita, a homemaker. Their neighbour, Maya, 40, who works as a domestic help, was also arrested.

According to deputy commissioner of police (west) Darade Sharad Bhaskar, the couple had been married for nearly eight years but had no children. “As Sanyogita often told Maya about her disappointment at not having a baby, Maya decided to help her and roped in the two boys to kidnap the infant, whom she had seen sleeping on the footpath with his parents,” Bhaskar said.

He added that the boys kidnapped the baby around 5am on October 8, and a case was registered at Tilak Nagar police station soon after the parents approached the police. During the investigation, officers scanned footage from more than 200 CCTV cameras, which showed that the baby was taken away by two boys on a scooter. Police then mapped their escape route.

“We got the scooter’s registration number and found that it had been stolen from Naraina police station’s jurisdiction by one Vikas alias Ryon, who is already in jail in another case. Ryon had given the scooter to his associate Anil, who later passed it on to one of the boys. Our team apprehended the boy, who revealed the entire kidnapping conspiracy,” said Bhaskar.

The teenager led the police to the other boy and to Maya, who had paid them ₹20,000 for abducting the infant. During questioning, Maya told the police she had handed the baby over to a childless couple living in her Uttam Nagar neighbourhood. The couple, who had paid the amount to Maya, were aware that the baby had been kidnapped, the DCP said.

“We raided the couple’s house and safely rescued the infant. The couple and Maya were arrested, the teenagers were apprehended, and the scooter was seized,” Bhaskar added.