SHAH ALAM: A 6-year-old girl gave her family a scare when she went missing for more than four hours in Kuala Langat.
The 1pm incident at Taman Yayasan, Banting saw police launching an operation to locate the girl after the child's mother lodged a police report, fearing that she could have been kidnapped.
Kuala Langat district police chief Superintendent Azizan Tukiman said the girl, whose name is being withheld, as she is underage, was later found safe by members of the public near a river not far from her grandmother's house at about 5.30pm.
"Initial investigation revealed that the girl was with her grandmother when the latter was talking to a neighbour at about 1pm. The neighbour had asked for the grandmother to help remove some tree branches.
"When they went to the back of the neighbour's house, the girl had followed but not long after that, the grandmother realised that her granddaughter had gone missing," he said.
Azizan said the grandmother started searching for her granddaughter around the housing area and at a playground nearby, but to no avail.
The grandmother then informed her daughter, the girl's mother, who then lodged a police report at 3pm, fearing for her safety.
"At about 5.30pm, police were informed that the girl was found safe near a river about 500m from her grandmother's house.
"Investigating officer assigned to the case had taken her to Banting Hospital for medical checks," he said, adding that police would interview the girl to find out where she had been and what had transpired.
The girl's missing case had sparked public concerns when an image of the mother's report and the girl's photo went viral on social media.