Karachi police on Tuesday arrested a couple along with their son-in-law for allegedly kidnapping a three-year-old boy who was later found begging outside a mosque in Shah Latif Town months after his disappearance.

According to SHO Sadaruddin Mirani, Hussain Ali, a child with an intellectual disability, went missing on May 4 while accompanying his father, Asif Hussain, at their roadside vegetable stall in Sector 17-A of Shah Latif Town. When initial search efforts failed, the family lodged a complaint at the Shah Latif Town police station.

 A formal kidnapping case was registered on May 27 on the complaint of the child's uncle, Nasir Hussain, under Section 363 of the Pakistan Penal Code (731/25).The family, originally from Multan, had been desperately searching for the child.

 Asif Hussain recounted the painful ordeal, saying, “My son wandered off while I was working. When I returned home shortly after, he was nowhere to be found. We searched everywhere but there was no trace of him. Reporting his disappearance to police was our last hope.”

He went on to say that the family was greatly impacted by the prolonged uncertainty, particularly his wife, whose health gradually deteriorated.

“We kept praying and, by the grace of God, our son has finally been found. We are grateful beyond words,” he said.

The breakthrough came on Monday when a friend of Hussain Ali spotted him near Farooq-e-Azam Mosque in Sector A-16. The boy recognised his missing friend outside the mosque with a man later identified as a professional beggar who was allegedly forcing the child to beg.

“I saw a suspicious man with a child who looked like my missing friend. I immediately alerted his uncle, who was inside the mosque,” the boy said.

The suspect, named as Shaharyar, was caught by the uncle and locals and beaten before being handed over to the police.

Shaharyar confessed under questioning that the kidnapped child had been given to him by his in-laws. Police arrested the alleged criminal couple after receiving this information.

Residents of Shah Latif Town told the media that several children had been abducted in the area recently, fueling suspicion of an organised kidnapping gang. 

They urged the authorities to launch a thorough investigation into the disappearances.