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       KARACHI: Police on Tuesday claimed to have arrested a couple and their son-in-law for their alleged involvement in kidnapping a school-age child, who was found begging outside a mosque in Shah Latif Town on Monday, several months after his disappearance.

       Area SHO Sadaruddin Mirani told Dawn that three-year-old Husain Ali had been kidnapped from Sector A-17 and the family had lodged an FIR (731/25) under Section 363 (punishment for kidnapping) of the Pakistan Penal Code against unknown persons around two and a half months ago.

       The officer said, on Monday an uncle of the child had gone to offer prayer at a mosque in Sector A-16 of Shah Latif Town where he found his missing nephew begging outside the mosque along with a man. The uncle and area residents caught the man, who was beaten and handed over to police. He was identified as Shaharyar.

       During grilling, the held suspect told the police that his in-laws had given him the child. On the information extracted from the suspect, the police also arrested the couple.

       According to media reports, the child had been kidnapped when he was returning home from a local shop in Shah Latif Town. The family had been desperately searching everywhere for the missing child.

       Area residents told the media that several children had been abducted from their area, and they strongly suspected that an organised kidnapping gang might be behind the disappearances.

       They have urged the authorities to carry out a thorough investigation into the missing children.

       Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2025