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In a bizarre case, the parents of a class 6 boy in Noida thought their child had been kidnapped when he called his father and asked him to pick him up in 5 minutes, they thought it was a ransom call for Rs 5 lakh.
The incident took place on Tuesday when the 11-year-old boy, who was peeved with his parents over an argument, decided not to go to school and hitchhiked on a stranger's bike from his residence in Noida's Chhijarsi area, to nearby Basrakh in Greater Noida. After wandering around for a bit, he felt famished and called his father to pick him up 'within 5 minutes'. But his father, who was worried sick and had already approached police with suspicion of kidnapping, thought that it was a ransom call and he was asked to bring Rs 5 lakh.
The suspicion grew further as the mobile phone, which the kid had borrowed from a labourer, was switched off after the call.
Soon the boy's family informed the police about the 'ransom call' and the phone was put on surveillance. .
"Soon, a local police team reached Bisrakh and kept trying the phone number which was switched on after some time. They located the number and reached the labourer and also found the boy wandering nearby," a police official informed media.
According to Akhilesh Tripathi, Station House Officer, Phase 3 police station, initially it appeared to be a case of kidnapping but later, it turned out that the child had left home on his own and made the call to his parents.
No official complaint was lodged in connection with the incident, he said, adding that the boy was brought back to his family members within hours.
Meanwhile, the father of the boy said it turned out to be "a case of miscommunication".
(With inputs from PTI)
