Kidnapping gang busted by Orangi police
A newborn boy was recovered a day after being stolen from Qatar Hospital
DHQ Hospital’s management, DCO take notice of incident launch inquiry. PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI:
It was nothing less than a miracle for Pervez and his wife that their newborn was back with them a day after being kidnapped.
Residents of Ittehad Town, the family had lost their baby boy hours after he was born in the government-run Qatar Hospital in Orangi Town Thursday evening.
This was their second child. "This was nothing less than a miracle for us," said Pervez, who works as a machine operator at a textile factory.
Pervez said that a woman, identified as Musarrat, dressed as a doctor and attended to his wife at the hospital for a while. He said Musarrat gave his wife something to make her ill and then stole the baby from Pervez's mother.
The family approached the police after failing to locate the kidnapper themselves. The police eventually arrested the woman during a raid in Orangi Town on Friday.
The law enforcers used closed-circuit television footage from the hospital to identify the woman and then, during interrogation, were able to ascertain where the child was being kept.
"The CCTV footage obtained from the hospital helped us trace and arrest the woman," said Orangi division SP Hassan Sardar Niazi. "The woman confessed to the crime and also provided us information about the house where the newborn baby was being kept."
SP Niazi said that the police have busted a gang involved in kidnapping of newborns. "By the grace of God, we were able to return the newborn to his mother and also bust a gang," said SP Niazi. "So far we have arrested 11 members of the gang."
The gang members arrested include seven males and six females.
The process
Initially, Musarrat denied her involvement in the crime but she later confessed and took the police to a house in Afghan Basti, Sohrab Goth - an area where illegal Afghan immigrants live.
Police officials raided a house in the area but did not find the newborn. Instead they found a woman, N*, who told the police that she had given the newborn to another person. The police raided the house of the man who supposedly had the child, but found nothing. The third raid, however, bore fruit, and the newborn was found in the home of a couple, who were taken into custody.
"Yes I did it but I had a valid reason, as I was compelled," defended Musarrat. "They [the couple] kidnapped my child and threatened me of dire consequences if I failed to provide them a newborn. This compelled me to kidnap the newborn," she said.
On the other hand, the couple denied all the allegations made by the kidnapper. "We were childless. We wanted a son and asked N to help us but we did not ask anyone to kidnap a newborn," the couple claimed. "We did not have anyone kidnapped but we did pay for the child," they said.
The police officials investigating the case said that the investigation was still at a preliminary level but the initial investigation suggests that this gang has been involved in kidnapping newborn babies, particularly from hospitals.
SP Niazi said that the gang members are trying to protect themselves by making excuses but the police have yet to question them about other kidnappings. The officer said that they would also question them about the kidnapping of a newborn baby from the same hospital about four months ago. Police officials said Musarrat sold a newborn to N for Rs10, 000 and then N, with the help of a middleman, sold the newborn to the couple for Rs135,000.
The case was registered and further investigation is under way.
*Name withheld to protect privacy
It was nothing less than a miracle for Pervez and his wife that their newborn was back with them a day after being kidnapped.
Residents of Ittehad Town, the family had lost their baby boy hours after he was born in the government-run Qatar Hospital in Orangi Town Thursday evening.
This was their second child. "This was nothing less than a miracle for us," said Pervez, who works as a machine operator at a textile factory.
Pervez said that a woman, identified as Musarrat, dressed as a doctor and attended to his wife at the hospital for a while. He said Musarrat gave his wife something to make her ill and then stole the baby from Pervez's mother.
The family approached the police after failing to locate the kidnapper themselves. The police eventually arrested the woman during a raid in Orangi Town on Friday.
The law enforcers used closed-circuit television footage from the hospital to identify the woman and then, during interrogation, were able to ascertain where the child was being kept.
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"The CCTV footage obtained from the hospital helped us trace and arrest the woman," said Orangi division SP Hassan Sardar Niazi. "The woman confessed to the crime and also provided us information about the house where the newborn baby was being kept."
SP Niazi said that the police have busted a gang involved in kidnapping of newborns. "By the grace of God, we were able to return the newborn to his mother and also bust a gang," said SP Niazi. "So far we have arrested 11 members of the gang."
The gang members arrested include seven males and six females.
The process
Initially, Musarrat denied her involvement in the crime but she later confessed and took the police to a house in Afghan Basti, Sohrab Goth - an area where illegal Afghan immigrants live.
Police officials raided a house in the area but did not find the newborn. Instead they found a woman, N*, who told the police that she had given the newborn to another person. The police raided the house of the man who supposedly had the child, but found nothing. The third raid, however, bore fruit, and the newborn was found in the home of a couple, who were taken into custody.
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"Yes I did it but I had a valid reason, as I was compelled," defended Musarrat. "They [the couple] kidnapped my child and threatened me of dire consequences if I failed to provide them a newborn. This compelled me to kidnap the newborn," she said.
On the other hand, the couple denied all the allegations made by the kidnapper. "We were childless. We wanted a son and asked N to help us but we did not ask anyone to kidnap a newborn," the couple claimed. "We did not have anyone kidnapped but we did pay for the child," they said.
The police officials investigating the case said that the investigation was still at a preliminary level but the initial investigation suggests that this gang has been involved in kidnapping newborn babies, particularly from hospitals.
SP Niazi said that the gang members are trying to protect themselves by making excuses but the police have yet to question them about other kidnappings. The officer said that they would also question them about the kidnapping of a newborn baby from the same hospital about four months ago. Police officials said Musarrat sold a newborn to N for Rs10, 000 and then N, with the help of a middleman, sold the newborn to the couple for Rs135,000.
The case was registered and further investigation is under way.
*Name withheld to protect privacy