Kidnap victim Nayati Moodliar’s captors fed him and allowed him to shower during the six days they held him.
His captors even asked what he would like to eat. Nayati’s response: “Could I have some chicken rice, please?”
A few details about Nayati’s experiences during his six-day kidnapping ordeal in Kuala Lumpur emerged when his parents, Shamelin Moodliar and Janice Smith, both originally from Cape Town, held a press conference a few days ago.
Nayati, 12, was returned safely to his family on Thursday and the press briefing was held the next day in Kuala Lumpur.
In a YouTube video of the briefing, Smith told reporters that the kidnappers had looked after Nayati.
“They took care of our boy. They fed him and even actually allowed him to take a shower… He came back well fed,” she said.
Moodliar then quipped that he knew his son had integrated into Malaysian society, because when the kidnappers had asked what he wanted to eat, he had asked for “chicken rice”.
Moodliar said the next thing his family planned to do was to take a retreat so that “as a family, we can heal together”.
“Right now I ask you again… in the coming days just give us a chance to heal as a family, quietly, away from all the questions,” he asked the media.
Moodliar said his family loved Malaysia and they intended to stay there.
He thanked a number of people for supporting his family since Nayati went missing, including the South African government.
In another post on YouTube on behalf of the Moodliar family, Nayati himself thanked everyone who had prayed for him and helped try to find him. “I really appreciate all your prayers. You guys found me and I really appreciate it,” he said.
Nayati, who has both SA and Dutch citizenship, was kidnapped on April 27 while walking to the Mont’ Kiara International School where he is a Grade 7 pupil.
He was released in Rawang, a town on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, on Thursday.
Moodliar and his wife are yet to divulge details about what had led to Nayati’s kidnapping and what resulted in his release.
A number of publications said the family had paid a ransom to the kidnappers.
On Thursday, just hours after Nayati’s return, Moodliar told the Cape Times he was not yet prepared to comment about the kidnapping itself as it was under investigation by police and his son’s captors were yet to be arrested.
Nayati’s uncle, Brett Swanepoel, from Cape Town, had said funds had been gathered for Nayati, but he was not sure whether this had been used as ransom money.
On Friday, the day after his son’s return, Moodliar had posted this message on Twitter: “I wept like a baby this morning with every fibre of my body – I cannot explain or control it. We are so grateful thank you all – thank you.” - Cape Times