ONGOLE: The Prakasam Police rescued 367 missing and kidnapped individuals, including children, women, girls, and senior citizens, over the past six months across the district. Of these, 42 were reunited with their families during a meeting chaired by Superintendent of Police (SP) AR Damodar at the district police office on Saturday. The SP counselled the victims and their families during the session and provided details of the rescue operations.
SP Damodar said, “On the directives of the State Director General of Police, we have been focusing on all missing and kidnap cases registered in the district for the past six months.
By responding swiftly to complaints, deploying special rescue teams, and alerting the public through social media and mainstream media, we successfully traced 367 missing and kidnapped individuals.”
Following the counselling session, the families expressed their gratitude to the police, SP, and other officials for their efforts.
The SP also released the AP Police Officers Association New Year Diary 2025 and appreciated its publishers. He highlighted that in 2024, the district police solved several significant cases and secured punishments, including life imprisonment, for heinous crimes.
During the release of the Annual Crime Bulletin 2024, SP Damodar noted a decline in various crimes compared to 2023. He said road accident fatalities were reduced by 6.72%, crimes against women dropped by 23%, and 82% of missing cases were resolved.
The recovery rate for stolen property reached 80%, with Rs 1.4 crore recovered from thefts worth Rs 1.7 crore reported in the past six months. Other crime reductions included a 41% drop in murder cases, 23% in kidnaps, 21% in rapes, 44% in criminal breach of trust, 53% in bodily offences, 47% in cheating cases, and 36% in SC/ST-related crimes. “We are using advanced technology to curb criminal activities in the district,” he added.
SP Damodar directed police officials to maintain the same spirit in 2025 to achieve further success in law enforcement. He acknowledged improvements in maintaining law and order, protecting vulnerable groups, traffic control, and road safety.