An 8-year-old boy who was kidnapped by unidentified persons 22 days earlier from his residence in Koteshwor, Kathmandu, was found dead Saturday.

Late Bibek Sharma Luintel (File Photo)

Late Bibek Sharma Luintel (File Photo)
Police recovered the body of Bibek Sharma Luintel from the banks of Dhobikhola in Chabahil, Kathmandu, this morning. Police had launched a search in the area on tip off of Pappu Yadav, a notorious criminal involved in several kidnappings for ransom.

Investigation into the kidnapping and the murder of the boy is underway, police said. Three persons suspected of kidnapping have been arrested so far.

Bibek’s family and Koteshwor locals had some two weeks earlier handed over a woman who, according to them, was behind the kidnapping but police had not been able to find out the boy. There were, however, no reports of any demand for ransom from the victim’s family.

The kidnapping episode had gained wide media converge while the MPs had also criticised the Home Ministry for its failure to track down the kidnappers and find out Bibek’s whereabouts.