Off-duty constable rescues abducted girl; accused held
Investigators found a closed circuit television (CCTV) camera in which a young man was seen leading the girl away.
A still from the video that shows the alleged kidnapper with the victim; Constable Zuber Tamboli (right).
A seven-year-old girl kidnapped from Ghatkopar four days ago will soon be reunited with her parents thanks to the initiative and courage shown by a Thane police constable.
When Constable Zuber Tamboli chanced upon the girl and her alleged kidnapper at Thane railway station on Sunday, he instantly recognised both from a CCTV grab of the kidnapping that had been circulated on messaging platform WhatsApp and single-handedly overpowered the accused and rescued the girl. The victim, the daughter of a vegetable vendor, went missing on May 27 from outside her house in Ghatkopar, where she was playing.
Investigators found a closed circuit television (CCTV) camera in which a young man was seen leading the girl away. A grab of the footage was then circulated on WhatsApp, and Tamboli was among those who received it.
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Tamboli was at Thane station to catch a train to Ambarnath when the incident occurred.
“I was standing on the foot overbridge when the accused and the victim passed by. They looked familiar, so I checked the CCTV grab and was convinced that they were the same. I decided to follow them,” said Tamboli. Having observed them for 10 minutes, Tamboli then approached the man and questioned him. He said the girl was his niece and that he was taking her to Uttar Pradesh.
His demeanour, however, made Tamboli suspicious. As Tamboli continued questioning, the alleged kidnapper tried to flee. “I tried stopping him, but he assaulted me. For several minutes, I grappled with him and then subdued him, after which I turned my attention to the girl. I told her not to worry, that I was going to take her back home, and after some convincing, I led her out of the station, all the time keeping the man under control,” Tamboli told The Indian Express.
“What hurt most is that not a single person came forward to help. No one came forward to ask me what was wrong while I was grappling with the accused. Later, I started shouting, asking people to at least take care of the girl while I took the accused to the nearest police chowky, but people just stood there and watched,” Tamboli said.
He then went to the Traffic Police chowky outside the station and contacted the Pant Nagar police, after which a team took both the accused and the victim into custody. The accused, identified as Rambilal Prajapati (24), was later arrested.
“The victim has been subjected to medical tests, and prime facie there does not seem to be any abuse, but we are waiting for detailed reports. Prajapati will be produced in court on Monday, and we will seek his custody,” said Senior Police Inspector Shankar Dhanawade of the Pant Nagar police station, adding, “We have sent a recommendation for a reward for Tamboli.”
gautam.mengle@expressindia.com
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