MAKKAH: A high school girl who was reported kidnapped Tuesday after failing to arrive at school was found later that day, said Maj. Abdul Muhsin Al-Mayman, spokesman for Makkah police. “Police officers began searching for the girl after the girl’s father reported her missing at Al-Ma’abda Police Station,” said Al-Mayman.
“The school notified the father that his daughter was absent from school,” he added. Al-Mayman did not disclose where the girl was found or whether police officers discovered her.
Police sources, meanwhile, said the girl was found accompanied by another girl. They also ruled out that she had been kidnapped. Officers were quick to mobilize search teams, as the city recently witnessed the discovery of the body of a female lecturer at Umm Al-Qura University who went missing after leaving work.
Huwaida Khoja, educational supervisor in Makkah, said schools have a policy of reporting absences to parents. “School principals note absences and are tasked with contacting parents to find out why their children are not in school,” she said. “The main problem that we face is that some students, who intend to be absent and do not want their families to know, unplug their home telephones. Others simply fail to update their contact details,” she added.
