Minor Girl Missing For 9 Years Found; Kidnapper Arrested

A young girl in Mumbai, India, who went missing when she was 7 years old was found by police and reunited with her family after nine years.

Mumbai police arrested Harry Joseph D'Souza for allegedly kidnapping the minor in 2013 in Andheri, Mumbai, Indian Express reported.

D'Souza told police that he kidnapped the now-16-year-old girl, identified only as Pooja, as he and his wife Soni did not have children at the time, according to an NDTV report.

After he welcomed a child with his wife, they made Pooja do all household chores and did not treat her well, according to police.

Pooja was reported missing by her parents on Jan. 22, 2013, after she went to school and never returned home. After that, a missing person complaint was filed at the DN Nagar police station.

Pooja told police what happened on the day when she was kidnapped.

"I was lured by D'Souza on the pretext of getting ice cream. While he did buy me ice cream, he took me to Haji Malang in Kalyan. I kept crying, so he threatened to throw me off the hill. Initially, they were good to me, but after they had a daughter in 2015, they would beat me up with a belt, rolling pin, etc.," she said.

After D'Souza, in a drunken state, told Pooja that she is not his daughter, she started looking for clues in the past, according to NDTV.

Police were able to track Pooja down thanks to the help of a female domestic helper, who was told by the teen about the harassment she was getting from the family.

"Pooja once told the woman that she was being harassed by her family members, who had kidnapped her years ago. The woman then searched on the internet to see if there was any news report about her missing case had appeared anywhere. During the search, she came across the articles about Pooja, following which she informed the police," authorities said in an official statement.

After receiving the report, police looked into it and were able to connect Pooja with the same girl who went missing in 2013. The 16-year-old was found living 500 meters from her home in Andheri.

Senior police officer Milind Kurder said that D'Souza was arrested on charges of kidnapping and unlawful labor. His wife was named an accused in the case.