One-year-old boy kidnapped from outside his house in Loni; rescued

According to officials, the toddler was playing outside the house alone around 4.30pm on Monday when he went missing

Ghaziabad A one-year-old boy was rescued within five hours by the Ghaziabad police after he was allegedly kidnapped on Monday evening from outside his house in Loni’s Tronica City, police said on Tuesday, adding that it was a case of child trafficking.

Officials said they have identified the man carrying the child as a resident of Loni, while the biker is from Shamli. (Representational image)

According to officials, the toddler was playing outside the house alone around 4.30pm on Monday when he went missing.

His mother, who was inside at the time, was unable to trace him despite searching for him everywhere.

She then informed her husband, who works as a supervisor at a nearby factory. The boy’s father subsequently filed a police complaint, and an FIR was registered at Tronica City police station against unidentified suspects under section 143(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), pertaining to trafficking.

“Upon receiving the complaint, we formed three teams that began scanning footage from all CCTV cameras in the area. In one of the footage, a biker was seen moving through the street near the boy’s house. Moments later, another man, around 25 years old, was seen walking away while carrying the child. It was found that the suspects went to a house in Prem Nagar, about five kilometres from the boy’s home,” said Siddharth Gautam, assistant commissioner of police (ACP), Loni circle.

Officials said they have identified the man carrying the child as a resident of Loni, while the biker is from Shamli.

“When our teams reached a house in Loni’s Prem Nagar, we found the boy with a woman. She told us a man, her former tenant, had dropped off the boy on Monday evening, saying the child’s mother had gone missing and the father was out looking for her. He requested her to take care of the child while he went to help. She was not involved in the kidnapping. The boy was rescued from her and reunited with his family by around 10pm,” said ACP Gautam.

Police said they received a tip-off that the child was kidnapped for money and was to be handed over to a woman. All three individuals — the two men and the woman — will be tracked and arrested soon, officials said.