Abducted toddler rescued & reunited with kin, kidnapper held

Six days after a one-and-a-half year old boy was abducted from Mumbra in Thane district for a ransom of Rs 5 lakh, he was rescued from Boisar in neighbouring Palghar district early Friday, police said.

The man, who had allegedly kidnapped the child was also arrested during the rescue operation, they said.

"Based on a complaint filed by the child's father, Monu Kumar Pasi, a resident of Mumbra, the police had on July 6 registered a case of kidnapping against Nagesh Pasi," DCP (Crime) Deepak Deoraj and DCP (Zone-I) S S Burse told reporters Friday.

The complainant and the accused belonged to the same village in north India, the officials said, adding that the accused is a friend of the child's paternal uncle Avdhesh Kumar.

"Last Saturday, Avadhesh Kumar took the toddler for an evening stroll in Mumbra area. Nagesh accompanied them. After some distance, he asked Kumar to get something from a shop nearby and told him that he would wait with the child," the officials said.

Kumar went to the shop and returned to the spot in some time, only to find that his nephew and Nagesh were not there, they added.

Following that, a search was launched and a complaint was filed.

"On Thursday, the accused called a cousin of the complainant and demanded a ransom of Rs 5 lakh for the child's release," Deoraj said.

Meanwhile, the crime branch, which was investigating the case, got some leads and came to know that the child was kept in Boisar.

"Accordingly, a police team rushed to the location and rescued the child early on Friday. Nagesh, who was also found there, was arrested," he said.

Thane Commissioner of Police Vivek Phansalkar handed over the child to his parents.