KOLLAM: The whole of Kerala are in prayers since Monday evening. Everyone's prayer is that Abigail Sara, who was kidnapped by an unknown group, should be returned as early as possible. Incidents of kidnapping children are rare in Kerala. However, a similar incident had happened in Kollam last year as well. A 14-year-old boy was abducted by a gang of six from Tamil Nadu.

The boy was abducted from his house at Kottiyam in Kollam. A joint operation by the police of Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam helped to nab the accused within hours. The gang that came in two cars barged into the house and kidnapped Manzil Azad's son Ashiq. The gang brutally beat Ashiq's sister while she was trying to prevent them from kidnapping her brother.

The incident happened when Ashiq's parents were not at home. Their relatives were behind the incident. Financial dealings were behind the kidnap. It was their relative’s son from Marthandam who hired the quotation team in Tamil Nadu. They were directed to bring the child to Marthandam. They later demanded a ransom of Rs 10 lakh from them.

The boy was kidnapped following a dispute over financial transactions. The boy's family had borrowed an amount of Rs 10 lakh from their relative and did not repay it. Biju, their relative’s son, hired a quotation team to get the money. Biju was a B Pharm student in Marthandam. The quotation was given for Rs 1 lakh to kidnap the child.

The gang abducted the boy after two days of surveillance. Their intention was to kidnap the boy and take him to Marthandam in Tamil Nadu. There were nine people in the group. An investigation conducted with the help of CCTV footage yielded information about the vehicle used to abduct the child.

After realizing that the vehicle was of Tamil Nadu registration, the investigation was carried out by sending a message in the district and state borders and tightening vehicle inspection. When the group reached Kaliakkavilai from Kottiyam, the police arrested them. The police are hoping that the same thing will happen to Abigail Sara as they were able to catch the accused and save the child.