Mumbai Crime Branch Rescues 1-Year-Old Girl Abducted from Footpath Near Eros Theatre

Mumbai, 4th October 2024: In a breakthrough, the Mumbai Crime Branch’s Unit 1 has successfully rescued a 1-year-old girl who was abducted while sleeping alongside her parents on a footpath near Eros Theatre, Churchgate. The woman responsible for the abduction was apprehended in Jaipur.

Inspector Rohini Potdar of Crime Branch Unit 1 stated that the case was registered at the Marine Drive Police Station on September 11th. Following the complaint, the team initiated an investigation. CCTV footage revealed a woman taking the child while she was asleep. The footage also captured her presence at CST station, boarding a train to Bandra Terminus, and eventually travelling to Jaipur by mail train.

A Crime Branch Unit 1 team, led by Police Inspector Gawde, travelled to Jaipur to apprehend the woman. Despite staying there for 15 days, the woman’s constant movement made it difficult to track her down. The Crime Branch enlisted informants in Jaipur to assist in locating her.

After the team returned to Mumbai, an informant reported that the woman and the child were found sleeping inside an ATM in Jaipur. The Mumbai Crime Branch then collaborated with local Jaipur police, who subsequently went to the ATM and took both the woman and the child into custody.

The Mumbai Crime Branch sent photographs of the woman and child to the local authorities for verification. Upon confirming their identity, the woman was arrested. She was identified as Preeti, also known as Payal Laxman Singh, aged 23. She is married but lives separately from her husband, and she has ties to Uttar Pradesh and Jaipur. The motive behind the kidnapping is still under investigation.