New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) In separate cases, three children who left home on their own will and subsequently went missing from different parts of the national capital, were traced and reunited with their families, police said on Saturday.

The Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) of Delhi Police Crime Branch successfully traced the three missing minors from different locations of Delhi and Surat in Gujrat.

In the first case, a 12-year-old boy, who was missing since 2021, was rescued from the capital’s Vikas Nagar area by an AHTU team led by Inspector Manoj Dahiya, SI Narender Kumar, ASI Rajesh Kumar and W/HC Sweeti No. 2799/NW, under the supervision of ACP, AHTU, Suresh Kumar.

Investigation revealed that his mother passed away approximately four to five years ago, after which his father remarried. His stepmother is a homemaker. The boy reportedly had no interest in his studies and alleged that his stepmother frequently scolded him. He stated that he fled his home and took refuge at Baprola Park and Shiv Mandir during this time.

A 16-year-old girl, who was reported to be missing on April 17, was traced to the Dhiraj Nagar area of Surat. Police said that she became friends with a boy studying in the same school as hers. On April 17, he eloped with the girl, and both of them reached Surat. They have been staying together in a rented accommodation.

An AHTU team led by Inspector Manoj Dahiya, Head Constable Pardeep No. 886/NE, Constable Ashok Kumar No. 1485/Crime and W/Ct. Mintu No. 1679/NE, under the supervision of Suresh Kumar, ACP, AHTU, conducted the operation.

In a similar case, officials said that another 16-year-old girl had eloped with a boy residing in her neighbourhood after they became friends.

The minor was also found in Surat by the same AHTU team. The boy had started working in a restaurant, and they had rented an accommodation in the city’s Ram Nagar area.

Officials highlighted that the Anti Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) teams battled time and distance complexities while using sharp technical surveillance, field intelligence and human sensitivity to ensure that every missing child was traced and reunited safely with their families.

–IANS

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