Kidnapped boy rescued, handed over to parents

The 9-year-old boy, Korubilli Damodhar, who was kidnapped from Chintalagraharam village, Pendurthi area, on September 8, was rescued by the police here on Monday. The police arrested two persons who were allegedly involved in the kidnap.

It was a great relief both to the parents and the police. The police launched a massive search operation involving four crack teams comprising over 60 personnel.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order, Zone-II) G. Ramgopal Naik, the police were certain that the boy was hidden somewhere close by and spread a dragnet across the Pendurthi area.

Basing on certain information and clues, the zeroed in on the Pendurthi hill, which is located close to the boy’s residence. While two teams surrounded the hill, a team, led by the DCP, climbed the hill braving heavy rain, and located the boy and the two kidnappers crouched under bushes atop the hill.

Basing on the initial questioning, the kidnappers appear to be local and were identified as Keshav and Chandra, who are in their early thirties. “As of now, the motive appears to be ransom,” said Dr. Ramgopal Naik.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (North Zone) C.M. Naidu informed The Hindu that the boy was unharmed, but looked a bit exhausted. “We have handed him to his parents after an examination by the doctors at KGH,” he said.

The boy went to a Ganesh pandal near his house at about 8.30 p.m. on September 8 and did not return home. A day later, his father, a petty businessman, received a ransom call for Rs. 30 lakh, from a coin phone booth in Pendurthi area. The second call from another coin phone booth was made on September 12, directing the father to collect a packet containing a memory chip from the hundi of Shirdi Sai Temple in Pendurthi. The chip contained the boy’s photograph, suggesting that he was safe and healthy.

According to Dr. Ramgopal Naik, further investigation would reveal whether the kidnappers were professionals who had committed such crimes earlier and if there is some other angle to the episode or others behind it.