SAHIWAL: Farid Nager police claimed to have arrested a drug addict who had allegedly kidnapped his own ten-year-old son, and recovered the boy, reuniting him with his mother in Mohalla Rahmat Pura, Pakpattan.

Station House Officer (SHO) Mr Shahzad says Sadia Noureen had married Zahid Ali, and the couple had four children.

Sadia lived with her husband and mother-in-law at Mandi Moor, Rahmat Pura. The police said Zahid, who was turned out to be a drug addict, would frequently forced Sadia, who worked as a house help, to bring money.

According to the couple’s neighbours, Zahid would often torture his wife and children. Consequently, Sadia and her mother-in-law kicked Zahid out of their house.

A few months ago, Zahid developed relations with a woman, and started living with her, allegedly without contracting marriage.

As per the SHO, on September 9, 2024, Zahid forced his entry into his Rahmat Pura house, snatched his eldest son, Ahmed (10), a Class VI student, from his mother and fled away. The family tried to search for the suspect and the child, but to no avail.

The family reported the matter to Farid Nagar police on Sept 27, lodging a criminal case under section 363 of the PPC against Zahid and the woman he had been living with.

The police kept looking for the suspect and finally traced his location through GPS. After confirming his location through an informer, the police conducted a raid, arresting Zahid and recovering the child. The SHO said that the boy has been handed over to his mother.

Published in Dawn, January 6th, 2025