NUR Damia Safira Fahmi went missing from her grandmother’s home in Sg Manik, Teluk Intan, just after noon on March 7.

The 5-year-old was napping when her grandmother left the house for less than 10 minutes. When she returned, the child was gone.

There was no sign of forced entry, only a door that was ajar.

“Only close relatives would know how to open the door. It was locked from the inside but can be opened from the outside if one knows how,” Nur Damia’s uncle, who wanted to be known only as Amin, told The Malaysian Insight.

“We believed that someone in the family had abducted her. When my mother realised that Nur Damia was missing, she panicked. She called me, my sister (Nur Damia’s mother) and other family members.

“One of us called the police immediately. Officers then came to our house.”

It was later learnt that Nur Damia had been taken by her father.

“We suspected that her father had taken her away. He and my sister are no longer together and live separately,” said Amin.

“At first, we tried speaking to his family, but they told us that they had no idea where he was, nor did they know what had happened.”

The National Urgent Response (Nur) Alert system highlighted Nur Damia’s abduction, making news of it go viral. Her photos and details were on billboards, ATMs and government websites, and shared widely on social media.

On March 12, Nur Damia was returned unharmed to her family.

A Hilir Perak district police spokesman told The Malaysian Insight that the girl was handed over to police by her father’s family after news of her disappearance went viral.

Amin concurred with police that Nur Alert led to the child’s safe return.

“Initially, I didn’t know about the system. I am very thankful to the cops and the public for helping my family.

“If not for the system, I think her father wouldn’t have handed her back to us.”

Nur Damia is now living with her mother and grandmother.

Asked if the child is still traumatised, Amin said she is slowly recovering.

“At first, she was quiet. But she is slowly turning back into her old self.

“From time to time, we would ask if she was still afraid. She would say, ‘no’.” – August 4, 2018.