Azaan kidnapping: Alleged mastermind arrested in major breakthrough

KARACHI, July 21: Police have arrested the alleged mastermind in the kidnapping case of two-and-a-half-year-old Azaan, who was abducted from Naya Nazimabad and recovered safely from Gharo after remaining missing for three days, ARY News reported.

According to police, the prime suspect is a friend of Azaan’s father. Investigators said he stayed with the family during the search for the child and continued pretending to be innocent to avoid suspicion.

Police said the suspects demanded Rs5 million in ransom from Azaan’s family after kidnapping the toddler from Karachi’s Naya Nazimabad.

The investigation found that the main suspect planned the kidnapping with his brother-in-law and another accomplice. After the abduction, Azaan was allegedly taken to Gharo in Sindh.

Police also recovered the motorcycle allegedly used in the crime, along with a fake number plate, helmets and clothes used by the suspects.

Earlier, Azaan was recovered safely during a police operation in Gharo, Thatta district. Police had first arrested a suspect during a raid in Sultanabad Thaim Goth before expanding the investigation, which led to the arrest of the alleged mastermind and two other suspects.

Further investigation is under way to determine the role of each suspect and recover any remaining evidence.

Earlier, the mother of two-and-a-half-year-old Azaan has strongly rejected social media allegations that her son’s alleged kidnapping was a staged incident, saying no mother would ever put her child through such an ordeal.

Azaan, who was allegedly abducted from New Nazimabad in Karachi, was recovered safely from the Gharo town of Sindh after being missing for three days.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Azaan’s mother became emotional while responding to criticism on social media, where some users alleged that the kidnapping had been scripted.

“You all have women in your families. Do you treat them with the same disrespect?” she said. “A mother would sacrifice her own life, but she would never hand over her child.”

She described the incident as the most difficult time of her life, saying it felt as though her world had come to a standstill when her son went missing.

She also questioned the role of the private housing society, saying no one was holding the society’s management or security guards accountable for the incident.

Responding to criticism over her use of a mobile phone shortly before the kidnapping, she claimed that the CCTV footage circulating on social media had been selectively trimmed.

Also Read: Kidnapped boy Azaan recovered from Gharo