Police rescue kidnapped schoolboy in Noakhali as manhunt for suspect continues

A 14-year-old schoolboy who went missing for six days after being abducted from a rickshaw has been rescued by police in Noakhali. Arafat Rahman, a seventh-grade student at a Syedpur educational institution, was recovered Saturday night from a makeshift shop in Maijdee, according to officials.

The ordeal began on July 26 when Arafat left his family’s rented home in Phulbari, Dinajpur, to return to his school hostel. His father, Jamat Ali, reported that the boy was intercepted by a rickshaw driver who sprayed a chemical substance on his face, rendering him unconscious. When the child could not be reached, his family filed a general diary with the Phulbari police, prompting a multi-district investigation.

Authorities believe Arafat was targeted by an organized criminal syndicate. Investigators stated that the boy was initially taken to Chittagong before being handed over to an individual identified as Alamgir Hossain. According to police, the suspect moved the boy between locations in Comilla and Dhaka’s Jatrabari area, where he was allegedly subjected to physical and emotional abuse.

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The breakthrough in the case came when police traced the signals from the victim’s mobile phone. This led investigators to a rented residence in Jatrabari. After questioning the suspect’s wife, officers learned that the boy had been transported to Noakhali. A specialized detective team tracked the pair to a row of stalls near the Noakhali District School, where Arafat was located inside a shop selling caps.

While police successfully secured the teenager, the suspect, Alamgir, managed to evade capture by fleeing into the crowd during the rescue operation. Arafat, who remains in a state of severe trauma following the abduction, is currently receiving care. According to Sub-Inspector Aminul Islam of the Phulbari police, as reported by Prothom Alo, legal proceedings are underway, and an extensive manhunt is active to apprehend the fugitive suspect.