Parents in Kikuyu Sub-County have been advised to take extra care of their children as cases of kidnap are on the increase.
This is after the mother of a 10-year-old boy on Friday morning told the police that her son had not come home after school.
The child is said to have been in Kikuyu Township Primary School until 4 pm when the school closed for the day, but after he left the school but he didn't get home.
Janet Njeri, his mother said she got concerned after the boy hadn't reported home by 4:20pm, which was his normal reporting time. She says after looking for him on the road up to school and at all his friends, she decided to report the matter.
Confirming the incident,the Kikuyu OCPD SSP Mutune Maweu said that child trafficking was on the rise as 7 incidences had been reported this year in the region. He added that parents should be careful and never let their children walk on their own.
The OCPD stated that parents should take their children to school and pick them in the evening to avoid such cases. He added that such kidnappers lure children easily when they are on their own.
"Parents should be very careful and ensure they do not allow their children to walk on their own especially to and from school,” said Maweu.
He however assured parents that police were working hard to eradicate the crime in the region.
He also urged schools to come up with ways to ensure they do not release children if their parents don’t come to collect them.
“Kidnappers are drugging children by drugging them using niceties like sweets. They should be warned against talking to strangers,” the OCPD stressed.
He appealed to the public to volunteer any information about the whereabouts of the boy.