Siliguri, Feb. 22: A mystery that started 2,000 km away in Kapurthala and traversed the country ended last night outside an ATM here when a Punjab police team apprehended a 14-year-old boy who went missing over three weeks ago.

Believed to have been kidnapped by militants, Kamalpreet Singh, the son of a retired police officer, was spotted by the guard of an ATM at Panitanki More. ?We caught him as he came out of the ATM after withdrawing money. He had taken his father?s ATM card without informing him,? said an officer leading a four-member Punjab police team camping here for a week.

Kamalpreet?s parents lodged a complaint on January 29 with the Kapurthala police that the boy ? their only son ? was missing, presumably abducted by former Khalistani militants keen to settle scores with his father, retired deputy superintendent Puran Singh Purewal.

The Punjab police traced Kamalpreet to eastern India after a withdrawal was made with the ATM card at a bank in Guwahati. Days later, a second withdrawal was traced to Siliguri. ?He drew over Rs 1 lakh from various ATMs of a bank during his 25-day odyssey,? said Siliguri additional superintendent of police Tripurari. The Punjab police then got in touch with their Darjeeling counterparts. His photograph was circulated and ATM guards were told to be on guard.

A Class VII student of Christ King Cotton School, Kapurthala, Kamalpreet also went to Agra and Coimbatore after fleeing home.