Prayers answered, Abigail Sara found; child is safe, say police

KOLLAM: Six-year-old Abigail Sara, who was kidnapped by a four-member gang from Pooyappally in Kollam, has been found. Sources said that the child was found abandoned in the Asramam Maidan in Kollam. The child has been shifted to the City Police Commissioner's office. According to reports, the accused escaped after abandoning the child on the ground. Abigail will be handed over to her parents after producing her in court.

The child was found in Asramam Maidan 20 hours after she was abducted by an unidentified gang. The incident took place at around 4.30 pm yesterday. Abigail, the daughter of Oyoor native Reji, was on her way to tuition class along with her brother Jonathan when the gang abducted her. Although the gang had attempted to kidnap Jonathan as well, the child managed to escape from them. At around 7.45 pm, the child's mother received a phone call from a woman who demanded a ransom of Rs 5 lakhs. Later, it was found that the phone call was made from a shop at Kulamada in Parippally. Upon investigation, the police found that the call was made by a man and a woman who came to the shop in an autorickshaw after borrowing the mobile phone of a woman working there. The woman in the shop had no idea what they talked about on the phone. The police are trying to find out if the man and woman who arrived in the autorickshaw were members of the group that kidnapped the child.

After a few hours, the girl's family received another phone call demanding more ransom. The kidnappers demanded Rs 10 lakhs to release the girl. The woman who spoke on the phone said that the child was safe with them and would be brought home in Oyoor at ten o'clock on Tuesday morning. She also told them not to report the matter to the police.

Abigail is the youngest daughter of Oyoor native Reji and his wife Siji. Reji is the dialysis in charge at Muthoot Hospital, Pathanamthitta. Siji is a nurse at KIMS, Kottiyam. The child was abducted in a white Honda Amaze car with a fake number.​

Abigail and Jonathan were on their way to the tuition class when the gang came from behind and stopped the car near them. A man then got out of the car and quickly pulled Abigail into the car. Although they attempted to kidnap Jonathan as well, the boy managed to escape from them. Following this, the gang fled the spot. The car went on the Oyoor-Parippally route. The family came to know about the incident only when Jonathan reached home crying. Only Reji's mother was there at home at that time. Soon, locals informed the police. The police forwarded the information to all police stations in the state and Tamil Nadu. The comforting news came at a time when the police were conducting an investigation focusing on the surveillance cameras.