A three-day old baby was kidnapped from the Kottayam Medical College Hospital on January 6, following which police found the accused, a 33-year-old woman from a nearby lodge and took her into custody. She was found with another eight-year-old child.
The woman was identified as Neethu, who hails from Thiruvalla and stays at Kalamassery. She went inside the ward dressed as a nurse around 3 pm and told the mother that the baby was preterm and that she had to do a check-up, following which she took the baby away.
When the newborn was not brought back, the parents asked the hospital, only to find that the baby was missing. They immediately informed the Gandhi Nagar police station.
Meanwhile, Neethu reportedly called for an auto from the lodge and told the auto driver that they wanted to go to another hospital, upon which the autodriver got suspicious as he had heard about the kidnapping in the MCH. He then informed others.
The auto driver, Alex, said, "The woman came out and told me she wanted to go to another hospital. When I asked her if there were other passengers, she said there was a newborn and a small boy. I immediately knew this was the woman who kidnapped the child and I alerted people, and the police were also informed."
Renjin, the RMO of the MCH, said that they suspect that this was not the first time that she has been involved in something like this. “She must have been the kidnapper of another child from a dental hospital nearby a few months ago, into which an investigation will be conducted,” he added.
Minister for Cooperation and Registration VN Vaasavan said that this might be part of a huge racket.
According to reports, Neethu told the police that she had some financial liabilities and thought that she could sell the child. Police are investigating the issue and carrying out an inquiry about the whereabouts of the eight-year-old.