SHENZHEN: Local police said late last night that they have cracked three student kidnapping cases that happened in the past two months, and also arrested six suspects.

The information was released after widespread rumors that a number of middle-school and primary-school students had been kidnapped and killed, triggering panic among many parents, who flocked to schools to pick up their children after work.

In a press release from the city's public security bureau, police said the three kidnapping cases occurred on Oct 20, Nov 3 and Nov 7.

A primary school student and a teenager were killed in two of the cases, and the third victim has been rescued, police said.

In the Oct 20 case, an 11-year-old boy surnamed Yi in a primary school in Nanshan district went missing after school. His parent was asked for a ransom of $500,000.

Police seized the suspect on Nov 12, who confessed that the boy was actually killed before he asked for the ransom, police said.

In the Nov 3 case, a 13-year-old student surnamed Mai went missing after night study at school. The student was rescued by police on Nov 6 in Changsha, capital of Central China's Hunan province.

In the last case, a fifth-grade student was abducted outside of a school in Futian district and was killed.

Despite the police press release last night, many local residents expressed anger towards the local government, which they said failed to clarify the situation in time, as the rumor started to spread at least 15 days ago.

"We got all information through the Internet or other parents and could not tell what was true," Wu Sheng, a father of a 12-year-old boy, said yesterday afternoon. "The more rumors I heard, the more anxious I became about the safety of my son."

The public has the right to know about serious crimes as quickly as possible, said Hu Xingdou, a professor with Beijing University of Technology.

"Timely disclosure of the cases helps calm down the public and also might help solve the case," he said.

Police also said last night that they have stepped up their efforts to ensure safe campuses, especially at year-end, a time that often sees rising crimes.

Thanks to tips from students, police have also cracked four criminal groups that planned to rob students, police said, adding that they have seized 15 suspects.

The city's public security bureau officials said they have launched an 80-day campaign that started Nov 23 to strengthen patrols around the schools and set up a reporting system between the schools and police. Police also said they will begin releasing any news about campus safety and crimes to the surrounding communities regularly and quickly.

Two guidelines compiled by the local police on precautionary measures and self-protection will soon be sent to the students and their parents to improve their awareness of safety and legal know-how.

(China Daily 12/09/2009 page5)