RAWALPINDI, Dec 26: Police claimed to have arrested three people who kidnapped a boy for huge ransom, besides busting two gangs of robbers and recovering the loot, including gold ornaments and cash.

City Police Officer Rao Mohammad Iqbal gave details of the arrests at a press conference held in his office on Friday. SSP Operation Sardar Maqsood Khan, SP Investigation Rana Shahid and other officers were also present on the occasion.

CPO Iqbal said Abdul Wahab, 10, left his home in Kohati Bazaar for private tuition in Asghar Mall Scheme on December 4, but did not return.

Parents of the missing boy launched a search but failed to trace him.

The CPO said on December 5, the boy’s parents received a call made from a mobile and the unknown caller informed that their son had been abducted and demanded ransom.

The kidnappers initially demanded Rs5 million from the parents and finally agreed to Rs500,000.

The culprits threatened the parents of dire consequences in case they informed the police. They selected Wah Garden as the venue to receive the ransom and one of Wahab’s uncles went there and handed over the amount to the kidnappers.

The CPO said the culprits left the child near the terminal of a popular bus service, but the boy’s parents did not allow the police to conduct a raid for the sake of their child’s life.

CPO Iqbal said when the culprits released the child, the police under the supervision of SP Investigation Rana Shahid moved against the kidnappers. Three persons were arrested and an amount of Rs335,000 was recovered.

He said the perpetrators – Mohammad Faisal and Mehboobul Hasan of Wah Cantonment and Mohammad Khalil of Karyala, GujarKhan – were also involved in mobile phone snatching and robberies.

The CPO said the police team comprising Asif Zahid Zahoor and constables Zafar Iqbal, Asif, Mohammad Hanif Qadri, Mehboob, Faisal and Imran, would be awarded appreciation certificates and cash prizes for this achievement.

He said a total 26 abductions for ransom were reported in Rawalpindi district during the last three months, adding that 25 cases had been resolved by the police and the last one case was under investigation.

CPO Iqbal said a gang of robbers, known by the name of Ilyasa Gang, had also been busted.

Gang members, including Mohammad Ilyas alias Toka, Mohammad Khalil, Ahmed Ali and Ifrahim, had been arrested and gold ornaments weighing 44 tolas, four mobile phones, two pistols, two daggers, one double barrel gun and a meat cleaver recovered from their possession.

The criminals have confessed that they were involved in more than seven cases of robbery and street crime.

The CPO said four members of another gang known as Fiaza Gang –Fiaz alias Fiaza, Waqas Kiani, Naheed Abbas and Iftikhar – had also been arrested and a motorcycle and three cellphones recovered from them.

The police officer added that these culprits were habitual criminals and they had made confessions of their involvement in various highway robberies.

CPO Iqbal said the arrests would help in controlling crime in the district. He lauded the performance of the police in this respect.