Bengaluru: A 65-year-old woman was arrested by the Bengaluru City Police for stealing a newborn baby from a hospital in the city and selling it to another couple. The baby was rescued on Friday morning and reunited with her family.
According to a report by TNM, the incident occurred at the Vani Vilas Hospital and the arrested accused is identified as Ayesha. It is believed that the woman is part of a larger kidnapping and baby selling racket in Bengaluru. city.
The crime was caught on CCTV footage, where a woman in a white churidar, white kurta, and black hijab seen carrying a baby wrapped in a white blanket outside the hospital.
TNM reported that the baby was delivered by 29-year-old Arshiya on November 10, after which she was placed under observation in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) due to water accumulation in the stomach.
Hospital authorities announced on November 11, that the child was out of danger and asked her caregivers to take her back from the ICU. Just two minutes later, Ayesha walked into the ICU and claimed that she was the child’s grandmother. She knew the names of the child’s parents and the nurse at the ICU handed the baby to her.
When the child’s father, Abdul Rashid went to pick up the newborn child, he was informed that she had already been taken.
The shocked and raged father immediately rushed to the police station and filed a complaint.
After combing through the CCTV footage, the VV Puram police were able to procure a photograph of the woman and circulated the same to all government hospitals in the city. The pictures were also given to the staff members in the hospital’s ICU.
The police were able to nab Ayesha when, on Thursday evening, she arrived at the hospital, this time claiming to be the grandmother of another baby, who was in the ICU. The staff recognised her as they had her picture and immediately notified the police, while stalling Ayesh by asking her questions.
While interrogating Ayesha, the police learned that she had sold Arshiya and Rashid’s baby girl to another couple in the city for Rs 80,000. The couple’s house was raided by the police and the baby was rescued. The couple who bought the baby has been arrested.
The police are currently trying to identify all people who they suspect are part of a baby selling network. “We will be making more arrests soon,” the VV Puram police said, according to TNM’s report.
Meanwhile, the police booked Ayesha and the arrested couple, who purchased the baby, for kidnapping and criminal conspiracy. They were remanded to police custody after being produced before a magistrate.
