Trapped: Three arrested for kidnapping, child recovered

Main suspect said he needed money to pay off his debt.

GUJRANWALA:

Police on Wednesday arrested three men on charges of kidnapping a two-year-old for ransom.

Police said the girl was kidnapped on November 4. The kidnappers had demanded Rs1 million ransom from her parents. However, after a settlement, the kidnappers agreed to release her for Rs400,000.

They said the girl’s father had been called to Kanganiwala Bridge. He had been told not to inform the police. He, however, took the police in confidence.



When a masked man came to pick the money from him, police followed him and arrested him.

They later also arrested the second kidnapper and his wife from their house in People’s Colony on information obtained from the detained suspect. The girl was recovered from the house.

Those arrested were identified as Shahzad Masih, Muhammad Idrees and his wife Bushra Bibi.



Idrees told police that he had married Bushra Bibi of his free will. He said his parents had thrown him out of their house and he started living in a rented house. He said they ad two children. He said he did not have a job and owed some people money. He said he decided to kidnap the girl to pay off his debt with the ransom.

He said they had not harmed the child. He said his wife took care of her as her own children.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 7^th, 2013.