A day after two persons, including a woman, were arrested for allegedly stealing a newborn boy from the government-run Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, the police on Wednesday said they were not ruling out the involvement of the hospital staff in the matter.
The accused, Chinmayee Bej, and her husband, Prashanta, were arrested late on Tuesday night from Baghmari in North Kolkata. The baby has been returned to its mother, Saraswati Naskar.
Asked whether they are suspecting the involvement of some hospital staff in the case, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Vishal Garg said: “We are looking into it.” He said so far they have not got any evidence to suggest a child trafficking angle to the case.
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Earlier in the day, locals of Baghmari said one of Prashanta’s relatives worked at the hospital and hence his wife was able to get easy access to the premises.
On Tuesday afternoon, Bej allegedly fled with the child on the pretext of taking him to the doctor for a check-up.
The police released CCTV footage in a bid to identify the accused.
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“The accused were produced in court on Wednesday and were remanded in police custody till March 24,” said Mr. Garg. A senior police official said that during interrogation Ms. Bej has “admitted” to stealing the child.