india

Updated: Apr 21, 2019 07:44 IST

A three-year-old boy from Rabale, who was allegedly kidnapped by his mother’s lover on Thursday, was rescued by the police from APMC Market in Vashi on Saturday. The police also arrested the 32-year-old accused – Hemant More – who worked at the market.

According to the police, the toddler’s mother and More had an extra-marital affair for the past six months. Sachin Pawar, sub-inspector from Rabale police station, said, “A few months ago, the accused asked the boy’s mother to elope with him. However, the woman was not ready to leave her son and husband.”

Police said More then planned to kidnap the toddler. “The accused tried convincing the woman for two to three months, but she didn’t budge. Assuming that if her son was taken away, the woman would come to stay with him, the accused decided to kidnap the toddler,” Pawar said.

“On Thursday, when the woman and her son went to a nearby market, the accused met them there. After a while, he lifted the boy and took him away in an autorickshaw. The woman and her husband then approached us,” Pawar said.

One of the police teams visited More’s residence at Govandi, but neither the accused nor the child was there. “The accused had switched off his phone after the incident, hence we were unable to trace his location. However, our sources saw him at APMC Market on Saturday with the boy, following which, we rushed to the spot and rescued the boy and handed him over to his parents,” Pawar said.

More was produced before a judicial court and has been remanded in police custody. “The accused was earlier arrested by the Shivaji Nagar police station in Mumbai after he got into a scuffle with some locals,” said Pawar.