Two-year-old girl kidnapped in Parklands, Nairobi

By Cyrus Ombati

Nairobi, Kenya: Police are looking for a two-year-old girl who was kidnapped from Parklands area, Nairobi.

The daughter of businessman Paresh Dohia is missing since Thursday 2pm when she was to be picked up from her school at Oshwal in Westlands area, police have said.

The driver too cannot be found and men believed to be the kidnappers have made a demand of Sh50,000 as ransom before they release her.

Nairobi head of police Benson Kibui says the driver had gone to pick up the girl from school but failed to return home. Dohia and his family made several calls to the driver but he did not respond. The car was Friday morning found abandoned in Kariobangi area.

"We do not know the motive of the incident but because they have made a demand of ransom we believe that is what they want," said Kibui.

A major hunt was ongoing as major police units have been mobilized to trace the girl and get the kidnappers. Cases of abduction have been on the increase in the country with police struggling to address them.

Meanwhile, several passengers were Thursday night carjacked and robbed in an attack along Jogoo Road, Nairobi. The bus they were traveling in was headed towards Umoja when four of the passengers turned out to be thugs and commandeered it into a dark alley where they robbed the others of their cash and valuables before escaping.

Police have since arrested the driver and conductor over the incident because they escaped and abandoned the passengers. Such cases are on the rise and police have asked matatu operators to take measures to address the crime.