Newborn recovered five days after he was stolen from Bihar nursing home, three arrested

The male child was stolen from a nursing home at Hajipur in Bihar’s Vaishali district on November 24, three days after birth.

Vaishali police on Wednesday night recovered the newborn who was stolen from a private nursing home at district headquarters Hajipur five days back.

Vaishali district superintendent of police Rakesh Kumar handing over the child to his mother at Hajipur. (HT photo)

Superintendent of police (SP) Rakesh Kumar said the alleged child-lifter and the couple to whom he had sold the newborn had been arrested.

The male child, born to the wife of Mukesh Sharma of Sinduyari village in the district through caesarian section, was stolen on November 24, three days after birth from the nursing home at Hajipur, 22 km north of state capital Patna. The theft was captured by the CCTV camera installed at the nursing home.

Kumar said alleged child-lifter Uttam Patel of Rajapakar village was identified on the basis of the CCTV footage and arrested after five days of electronic surveillance.

READ| Three-day-old child stolen from private nursing home in Bihar, theft caught on camera

During interrogation, Patel disclosed that he had sold the child to a couple at Rajapakar village for Rs 1.20 lakh and received an advance payment of Rs 1 lakh, the SP said.

On the basis of inputs provided by Patel, the police raided the house of the couple when the family was performing ‘chatti’ (a ritual after six days of child birth) and recovered the newborn.

The couple, parents of three girls, had been arrested, the SP said, adding that the child was handed over his mother, still admitted in the nursing home, at 11.30pm.

Meanwhile, Bihar director general of police PK Thakur has congratulated the Vaishlai police team for recovering the child and said the team involved in the investigation would be suitably rewarded.