Man gets 12 ½ years jail for abducting child

Manama : A Bahraini man was yesterday sentenced to twelve-and-a-half years imprisonment for abducting a five-year-old girl from her mum’s car in Hoora back in 2016.

The man was sentenced by the First High Criminal Court. The verdicts varied between ten and six months for  the charges of abduction, sexual harassment, assault on a policeman, theft and drugs abuse.

The case was reported on August 2, 2016, when the defendant stole the mother’s car from a vital commercial road in Hoora while Sara, the Indian child, who was left alone in the car was in the back seat.

The case shocked the Bahraini society back then and a manhunt was launched to nab the man, locate the stolen vehicle and retrieve the girl. Additionally, a social campaign was launched on social media networks, in a bid to find the girl.

Within 48 hours, police efforts came fruitful and investigations led to the abductor, who was arrested along with a female associate in a flat in Central Manama.

The incident even reached the Indian government, as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj requested the Bahraini authorities to double the efforts to solve the case.

Quoting a report published by DT News back then, following the man’s arrest, the minister thanked the government here on her official Twitter page saying, “I am happy Sarah has been rescued. Thank you Bahrain.”

The court yesterday sentenced the man to 10 years  for the abduction and assault on the girl and stealing the car, one year for assaulting a policeman, six months for stealing the victim’s mother’s belongings from the car, and one year and a fine of BD1, 000 for drugs abuse.