A 4-year-old child who had gone missing from a street near Leather Complex Road in Jalandhar on Thursday afternoon has been safely traced by the Commissionerate Police and handed over to his family, police said on Friday.
The child had allegedly been taken away by two youths riding an Activa scooter from Kunj Gali, an area falling under Basti Bawa Khel Police Station and the incident had prompted a police investigation and an alert across the city.
According to the child’s mother, Shanu, the incident took place at around 1:45 PM on September 17 and she said her son, identified as Goldy, was playing in the street when two youths arrived on an Activa scooter, took the child with them and fled.
Locals said the youths allegedly fled towards Raj Nagar after taking the child.
Goldy, who was present in the area, told about the incident, while another child, identified as Krish, also reportedly provided information to the police.
Krish told officials that two youths riding an Activa had taken his friend and following the incident, local residents gathered at the spot and police were informed. Police teams reached the area and began efforts to trace the child and establish what had happened.
Police examined CCTV footage from cameras installed around the area to track the movements of the suspected youths and the Activa scooter and the investigating officer had earlier said that the initial footage checked by police did not clearly capture the incident. Footage from additional cameras in surrounding areas was subsequently examined as part of the search.
Police also alerted the control room, following which information about the missing child was circulated across the city and according to Commissionerate Police Jalandhar on Friday, ACP West Aatish Bhatia said information about the disappearance was received at around 2 PM on September 17.
During the preliminary inquiry, police learned that two persons riding an Activa had taken the child.
A case was registered at Basti Bawa Khel Police Station and further investigation was initiated and police teams worked on different aspects of the case and examined CCTV footage from the surrounding areas.
The police said the child was eventually traced safely with the cooperation of the public, family members and people who shared information through social media and other platforms and after completing the necessary formalities, the child was handed over safely to his family or guardians.
The Commissionerate Police has thanked residents, family members, individuals who shared information on social media and media organisations for their assistance in locating the child.
Police have also appealed to the public to immediately inform them about any missing child or suspicious activity and cooperate with investigations.