A one-month-old infant was reportedly kidnapped from the Government General Hospital (GGH) in Paderu, Alluri Sitharama Raju district, on Thursday. The infant was rescued within half-an-hour due to the timely intervention of the police.

According to the Paderu police, Pangi Kanthamma and her husband Rama Rao from Salugu panchayat of Paderu mandal had brought their one-month old baby boy to the hospital for treatment related to feeding issues. After sometime, the infant went missing.

The hospital staff, along with the parents, immediately alerted the police, who collected CCTV footage from the hospital premises, and identified the suspect as S. Krishnaveni from Uppa village - Hukumpeta mandal.

All police stations across the district and in the Visakhapatnam Range were immediately alerted. The suspect’s photograph was widely circulated. Local jeep and auto drivers were alerted. Assistance was also taken from APSRTC depot managers to trace the accused and the child. Intensive vehicle checks were also launched.

With the coordinated efforts and rapid response the police nabbed the accused at Hukumpeta and took her into custody, and safely rescued the infant. After a medical examination, the infant was handed over to the parents.

During investigation, it was found that the accused S. Krishnaveni had recently undergone an abortion and was reportedly unable to conceive, which police suspect could be the motive behind the kidnapping.

Further investigation is on.