Girl abducted in Kerala yet to be traced as police widen dragnet

Kollam: The whereabouts of a six-year-old girl, abducted from Pooyappally in southern Kerala a day ago, still remain unknown.

Despite increased efforts by the police, the child has not been traced. A police officer said on Tuesday that the force is exploring all angles to locate the missing child. A sketch of a suspected kidnapper has also been released by the police.

The kidnappers, suspected to be four in number including a woman, came in a white car and had abducted the girl while she was going for tuition classes along with her eight-year-old brother, according to the boy’s statement to police. When the boy tried to stop the abductors, they pushed him aside and whisked away the girl in the car, an officer from the Pooyappally police station had said on Monday. The victim’s brother suffered injuries to his knees while trying to save his sister, police had said. The incident occurred on Monday between 4 pm and 4.30 pm, according to the police.

As concerns about the kidnapped child grew, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday had directed the state police to intensify its investigation. He had directed the state police chief to ensure a flawless and speedy investigation into the incident, his office had said in a statement. Vijayan had also said police are actively searching for the girl and requested people not to spread false information about the incident.

According to visuals shown on television news channels, two ransom calls were allegedly made by the kidnappers. Initially, they demanded Rs 5 lakh and then later doubled the figure. In the audio recording of the purported second ransom call, shown on TV channels, the kidnappers could be heard saying that the girl is safe and unharmed and will be returned on Tuesday morning on a payment of Rs 10 lakh. The kidnappers had also warned the parents not to inform the police. Prior to that, a ransom call demanding Rs 5 lakh was received by the parents a few hours after the kidnapping.

Police have intensified the search for the girl, with vehicles being checked on all major and minor roads in the southern districts of Kollam, Pathanamthitta and Thiruvananthapuram. Visuals showed police officers checking vehicles, especially white-coloured ones, on the roads. The parents of the children are nurses in two separate private hospitals.