JHARSUGUDA: A nine-year-old boy who went missing on April 7, kept Jharsuguda police on its toes for 24 hours before being traced in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur on Monday. The kid, Prince Soni of Burumal in Jharsuguda town, went missing from his house on April 7 after being reportedly reprimanded by his family members. Family members searched for him in the locality but could not locate him.
As Prince had earlier run away from home twice, they thought he will come back on his own. But when there was no sign of the boy for two days, family members lodged a missing complaint with police on Sunday.
Spooked by the recent kidnap and murder of a teenager, Jharsuguda Town police went into a frenzy as rumours of Prince being abducted by miscreants started doing the rounds. Much to their relief, the boy was traced in Chhattisgarh.
Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Nirmal Mohapatra said basing on the complaint of the boy’s family members, a case was lodged under section 363 of the IPC. As part of the investigation, police scanned CCTV footage and came to know that the kid went to Jharsuguda railway station.
“Subsequently, we circulated the boy’s photos to the GRP and RPF of Howrah, Bilaspur and Sambalpur. On Monday morning, we were informed that RPF personnel rescued the boy from Bilaspur and handed him over to the local child welfare committee (CWC) there. The investigating officer and the boy’s family members have gone to Chhattisgarh to bring him back,” he informed.
The SDPO further said the kid’s parents informed that he earlier ran away from his home twice. The exact details can be ascertained after the boy is brought back. The incident comes close on the heels of the abduction and murder of 15-year-old Samarth Agrawal, the son of a businessman of Sarbahal in Jharsuguda town. Samarth was abducted on March 27 and the same day, his parents got a call from the kidnappers who demanded a ransom of Rs 50 lakh.
The next day, Samarth’s half-burnt body was found near Baipur Grid at Bheden in Bargarh district. Later, police arrested two persons who had kidnapped the teenager. The prime accused was a close acquaintance of Samarth’s family.