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Police dispatch special team to find three missing children in North Sumatra
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Before they went missing on Oct. 18, three 7-year-old children were seen playing tag in front of an excavator.
(Shutterstock/File)
T
he North Sumatra Police's criminal investigation unit has formed and dispatched a special team tasked with finding three children from the province's Langkat regency who have been missing for weeks since they were last seen playing in an oil palm plantation last month.
The police said they had exhausted all possible options in their search, even so far as bringing several paranormal investigators to Palka VI hamlet of Naman Jahe village in the regency's Salapian district, where the three 7-years-olds –Yogi Tri Herlambang, Nizam Auvar Reja and Alfisa Zahra – were last seen.
Before they went missing on Oct. 18, the three were seen playing tag in front of an excavator, which was then digging a ditch inside the plantation area, as shown in a video captured by a local resident's mobile phone.
North Sumatra Police deputy director of criminal investigations Sr. Adj. Comr. Faisal Napitupulu said the police wanted to uncover what had happened to the children as there were a lot of circulating rumors and speculation of a kidnapping.
“The special team will back up the investigation of the three missing children [by the local police in] Langkat. The team is currently working in the field,” Faisal said on Tuesday.
The team has already investigated the area where the kids were last spotted and questioned several eyewitnesses.
“We are optimistic that we will soon find the three missing children,” Faisal said.
Langkat Police deputy chief Comr. Hairil Sani said the police enlisted 150 officers with the help of local residents and volunteers to find the kids. They had searched several areas up until Sunday, finding no traces or leads.
Previously, the search operation reportedly faced difficulties as crowds of bystanders flocked to the location where the three children were last seen, allegedly without complying with health protocols imposed during the pandemic.
Hartoyo, the father of Yogi, one of the missing children, pinned his hopes on the police finding his son.
He recalled seeing Yogi and his two friends playing near the excavator on Oct. 18. Hartoyo said he had reminded his son to stay away from the heavy equipment.
“That was the last time I saw my son before he disappeared,” Hartoyo told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
“I have a feeling that my son is still alive. I hope the police can find him soon.” (ami)
