Patna: Munger police on Thursday claimed to have cracked the kidnapping of a three-year-old boy who was allegedly sold for Rs 3 lakh. The police rescued toddler safely from Bhojpur within four hours and arrested seven people, including a 13-year-old girl who allegedly lured the child away with the promise of chocolate.The incident took place in Lal Darwaza locality under Kotwali police station area on Aug 12. Abhiraj (3), son of Vinod Yadav, was playing outside his house around 2pm when he suddenly went missing.CCTV footage from the area showed a 13-year-old neighbourhood girl calling the toddler on the pretext of giving him chocolate. The child was seen running behind her towards the Lal Darwaza main road. Investigators said a man standing across the road signalled to a white vehicle, after which the child was abducted.When the boy could not be traced, his family informed Kotwali police. Acting on the CCTV footage, police detained the girl and her father, Neeraj Kumar, a resident of Lal Darwaza, and began questioning them.During interrogation, police learnt that the child had allegedly been sold for Rs 3 lakh. Officers recovered Rs 1 lakh, said to be an advance payment, from Neeraj’s house.Munger SP Syed Imran Masood said the kidnappers had put the child in an SUV and were planning to take him to another state. “The child’s location was traced on a national highway in Bhojpur. Munger police coordinated with Bhojpur police and, with the help of Ara police, intercepted the vehicle within four hours. The child was rescued safely,” he said.Three women and two men travelling in the SUV with the child were arrested and are being questioned. The SP said five of the arrested persons are from Punjab, while the vehicle used in the crime is registered in Haryana.Police suspect the involvement of an inter-state human trafficking network and are investigating the case from that angle. Further investigation is underway.
