Police arrest 37-yr-old Dharavi resident for kidnapping minor

A 37-year-old man in Mumbai was arrested for allegedly kidnapping and attempting to kill a 6-year-old boy by strangling him with a belt on a local train. The boy was rescued and the accused was traced through CCTV footage. The police believe that the accused and the complainant had personal enmity. The investigation is ongoing.

Mumbai: Police in Dharavi arrested a 37-year-old man on Saturday night for allegedly kidnapping and trying to kill a 6-year-old boy by strangling him with a belt on a local train. The boy was kidnapped on the night of November 10, and police traced the accused by scanning CCTV footage in the area. The boy was also rescued by Railway Protection Force personnel and handed over to his family.

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According to the police, the complainant Anwar Nakib Shaikh, 26, is a resident of 90-feet road in Dharavi and a pharmacist by profession. He alleged in his complaint that his nephew aged 6 years and 10 months was kidnapped by an unknown person while he was playing near their residence on Friday evening. The Dharavi police registered a case of kidnapping under section 363 of the Indian Penal Code based on Shaikh’s complaint.

Several police teams were formed to probe the matter after the police learned that the accused and Shaikh had some personal enmity and the former wanted to take revenge by kidnapping and killing his son. One team questioned the victim’s friends and other people for leads while another team began scrutinising footage from CCTV cameras in the area, said a police officer.

Meanwhile, one of the victim’s friends saw him travelling with a middle-aged man and informed the police. Based on this lead, police scanned four CCTV cameras and came across footage that showed the minor boy accompanied by a person named Mohammad Nazib Wasiul Rehman Shaikh, 37, who lived in the same area, said the officer.

During further investigation, police came across CCTV footage at the Bandra railway station, which showed Wasiul Shaikh boarding a Virar-bound train with the minor boy on Friday night. Shaikh tried to kill the boy by strangulating him but when the boy resisted, he abandoned him in Virar and fled from the spot, said police.

On Saturday morning, RPF personnel stationed at Virar found the boy. Meanwhile, Dharavi police also reached the spot and took the victim in their custody. The minor boy, who had injury marks on his neck but was stable, was handed over to his family later in the day, said the officer.

“We nabbed the accused on Saturday afternoon once he returned to Dharavi, where he lives. Further investigation in the case is on,” said deputy commissioner of police Manoj Patil.