A 13-year-old boy was nearly kidnapped on 19 February while he was walking back home from school in Tanjung Tualang, Batu Gajah, Perak, reported The Star.
Batu Gajah OCPD ACP Ahmad Adnan Basri confirmed that the incident happened at 1.30pm, right when school ends for many children.
Source: Suara Perak
The boy was near the Taman Tualang junction when a silver Proton Waja stopped next to him. One of the suspects in the car’s backseat opened the door and tried to grab the kid, said Ahmad. Thankfully, the boy managed to escape the perpetrator’s grasp and quickly ran into his house.
The boy and his 50-year-old father later went to lodge a police report. Ahmad said, “The boy did not sustain any injuries, and we believe there are three suspects involved.”
The kidnapping attempt reportedly took place a mere 600 metres away from school grounds. There were no houses, businesses, or security cameras nearby, so the boy was extremely lucky to have gotten away.
For illustration purposes only | Source: The Star
This case is currently being investigated under Section 365/511 of the Penal Code for kidnapping. If the suspect is found guilty, he may be punished for seven years of imprisonment.
The crime of kidnapping has been on the rise lately, with a report citing that on average, four children go missing every day in Malaysia. Oh no!
With over 723 cases of children that have gone missing in the first half of 2017 alone, it is noted that 60 per cent of the missing children are girls. Although just over half of these are cases of runaways, they can easily transition into kidnappings. As such, the National Urgent Response (NUR) Alert was implemented in 2007 to help find missing children by blasting out alerts through media, hotels, and bank ATMs.
In light of all this, it’s increasingly important to educate children about stranger danger, tactics on how to prevent kidnapping, as well as plans of action in case of any attempts. For additional reading and sharing, you can have a look at some tips here or here.
For any emergencies related to children, you can also call Childline, a 24-hour helpline for children in Malaysia at 15999.
What a close call! We’re so glad the boy is safe and hopefully, security is tightened in that area!
Also read: M’sian Police Reveals That On Average, 4 Children Go Missing Every Day in Our Country
