SIBU: Three persons including a juvenile were yesterday provisionally charged in the magistrates’ court with kidnapping a baby boy for a ransom of RM25,000.No plea was taken from them after the charge was read and explained to them through an interpreter.

Magistrate Jessie Wong ordered them to be further remanded in prison under Section 177A of the Criminal Procedure Code as the offence is a non-bailable one.

They are to appear for further mention on Dec 4 pending consent from DPP for the case to be transfer to the High Court. Moreover, the chemist’s report was not yet ready.

Their offence falls under Section 3(1) of the Kidnapping Act 1961, read together with Section 34 which provides for a death sentence or life imprisonment with whipping.

The accused identified as only Tiong, 22, of Jalan Pipit; Ling, 23, of Jalan Oya; and a 16-year-old juvenile from Jalan Hua Kiew were represented by Roger Lau, Louis Jarau and Darren Ling, respectively.

The police successfully foiled an attempt by two youths to obtain the ransom less than five hours after they kidnapped the baby on Nov 2.

Two of them were arrested about 2pm at Pedada Road. The police recovered the ransom money and also saved the baby.

The baby was kidnapped around 9.30am while it was under the care of a 40-something woman baby sitter in Hua Kiew Road.

The baby’s father (who is related to the baby sitter) and his wife were not in Sibu at that time.

The two alleged kidnappers who came on a motorcycle and believed to have been armed were said to have grabbed the baby from its cradle.

The shocked baby sitter lodged a police report immediately after that.

Less than an hour later, one of the kidnappers rang up the baby sitter and demanded a ransom. The baby sitter haggled with him and the random was reduced to RM25,000.

Acting on the information received, the police located the baby who was left at a building in Jalan Tun Abang Haji Openg.

The baby was safe, and was subsequently handed to the baby sitter.