Teen’s Social Media Obsession Leads to Runaway Case: What began as an ordinary family dispute in Burari turned into a worrying nationwide search earlier this month, after a 14-year-old boy from Delhi walked out of his home and set off on a journey hundreds of kilometres away all because his love for making social media reels spiralled into conflict at home. The teenager was eventually tracked down and brought back safely by police in Bengaluru, officials said.
Teen’s Social Media Obsession Leads to Runaway Case
The minor went missing on 11 January, shortly after his mother confiscated his mobile phone to curb what she and his family described as an obsession with creating short videos and spending excessive time on the device. According to Delhi Police, persistent arguments about his mobile phone use and online gaming had caused friction within the household in the days leading up to his disappearance.
When the teenager failed to return home and his family could not reach him by phone, concerns quickly escalated. His father registered a missing person complaint with the local police station, fearing the worst including possible kidnapping. Authorities recognised the urgency of the case given the boy’s young age and immediately activated a tracing operation. “After he went missing, his father approached the local police station with fears that his son might have been kidnapped. A case was registered, and a team was formed to trace the minor at the earliest, given his age and the potential risks involved,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Raja Banthia said in a statement.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), Raja Banthia, said law enforcement teams began piecing together the boy’s movements using available technical clues. Initially, tracking proved difficult: the phone he had taken was repeatedly switched off. However, intermittent activity including UPI transactions from his father’s account.
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Police Investigation
The investigators found that the device had its final active period in Hubballi Karnataka on 14 January when they examined the intermittent location data and the payment information. The police conducted an extensive investigation to identify his train route while they notified railway police departments in all relevant areas.
The collaboration between the Government Railway Police (GRP) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF) proved to be essential for all operations. Railway workers in Bengaluru received information about the missing boy as trains entered the station area. Police officers found him at Bengaluru Railway Station on 15 January and took him into protective custody.
The boy’s father immediately travelled to Bengaluru, and after completing necessary legal formalities, the teenager was returned to his family in Delhi on 19 January.
Teen Shares His Side
During questioning and subsequent counselling, the boy revealed that he had boarded a train from New Delhi with plans to continue travelling further south even to Tamil Nadu driven in part by his aspirations to become a social media influencer. He admitted that he had switched his phone on occasionally during the journey to upload content and make digital payments, actions that inadvertently helped police pinpoint his route.
