12-year-old kidnap victim escapes

JOHOR BARU: A 12-year-old girl supposedly escaped from her captors and found her way home a day after she went missing while waiting for her school bus in front of her house on Sunday.

The girl was allegedly kidnapped in Taman Mount Austin at about 6.30am. She was found in a daze with her uniform torn near her shoulder and barefooted at about 4.30am yesterday.

She was allegedly kidnapped and kept in an abandoned flat near her home. When contacted, a close family member, who declined to be named, said the girl claimed that she was grabbed into a car by four individuals and blindfolded before she fell asleep.

“She told us she briefly woke up, but was too afraid to scream for help as she heard people talking.

“She then fell asleep again, and woke up a few hours later,” she said when contacted by The Star.

Upon realising that the place was silent and her hands and legs were not tied, the girl decided to open the blindfold and escape.

“It was dark but when she got out in the street, she knew where she was and started walking home barefooted and with a slightly torn uniform.

“She came home shivering in fear and was only able to tell us what happened after eating and taking a nap,” the girl’s relative added.

She also said that the girl seemed shaken by the experience but a hospital check-up showed no signs of abuse or physical injuries.

Her aunty had highlighted the case via a post, which went viral on Facebook and WhatsApp, urging members of the public to keep a lookout for the girl.

She expressed gratitude to those who had helped search for the girl or had prayed for her safety.

Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Sulaiman Salleh confirmed the case, adding that the girl was physically unharmed but may be in slight trauma and undergoing a check-up in hospital.

“We are still investigating if there are criminal elements involved,” he said, adding that the case was classified under Section 363 of the Penal Code for kidnapping.

When asked if the girl could have been with people she knew, ACP Sulaiman said police were investigating all angles.

He warned that parents with children below the age of seven could be punished under the Children’s Act 2001 if they deliberately exposed their children to possibilities of being kidnapped.

Under the same Act, it is an offence for parents to leave their children without supervision for an unreasonable period of time.

In an unrelated case, Kulai OCPD Supt Razak Said said police are looking for a 23-year-old woman who disappeared from her home in Jasmine Park, Taman Putri, three months ago.

Nurhazieqah Nordin (pic) had gone missing after leaving her home in a rush at about 3.55pm on April 14. Her mother Rosnah Jaafar, who lodged a report on April 16, claimed that she was cleaning her home when she heard a loud sound from her daughter’s room.

“I went to check the room but she was already gone,” she said.

Supt Razak said Nurhazieqah was last seen clad in a long-sleeved blue T-shirt with blue jeans and a black headscarf.

Those with information can contact the Kulai police station at 07-6634 222 or 07-6637 424.