Two motorcycle-borne criminals abducted a nine-year-old boy on Tuesday evening when he was returning home from school in the Bochahan area, about 25km from Muzaffarpur.

Police on Wednesday said Tej Prakash, alias Neeraj, a Class I student of Holy Cross Children School, was whisked away by the criminals when he was on his way back home at Kashirampur village.

The police added that Neeraj was with his younger sister, Chulbul Kumari, 7, when the incident occurred near Maidapur village.

Deputy superintendent of police (East) Shibli Nomani said an abduction case was lodged with the Bochahan police station on Tuesday night on the basis of a statement of Neeraj’s father, Deepak Kumar.

Nomani added that Kumar, a painter, has received an extortion call, but did not disclose the amount of money that the abductors have sought to release Neeraj.

According to sources, the police are tracking the calls of the cellphone that was used to make the extortion call.

The sources, however, refused to divulge further details about the investigation.

Nomani said Chulbul told the police that Neeraj knew the abductors. The officer added that the police have interrogated Deepak.

“He feigned ignorance about the criminals’ identity,” Nomani said. The officer did not rule out the possibility of an enmity between Deepak and the abductors.

The police have conducted raids in the Sikandarpur and Balughat areas to trace the boy.