February 14, 2019, 11-year-old Riya Rajkumar was abducted and murdered by her father on her birthday. Her father took her out for a birthday celebration Thursday afternoon but when he failed to show up on time, Riya's mother called the police. The first amber alert was sent out just after 11:30 in Canada. The little girl's dead body was found in a Brampton home basement shortly thereafter. The father was found and arrested thanks to a tip from the Amber Alert.
And yet there are people complaining.
Immediately after the amber alert was issued at 11:36 p.m, the calls started and continued through the Friday morning. By 9:30 Friday morning, 383 complaint calls were logged by emergency dispatchers. People were infuriated that they were woken up when their phone was on do not disturb, or that they got the alert though they were too far away to do anything. People took to social media to openly complain about the alerts, which Canadians are unable to opt out of because the minor inconvenience they experienced was more important to them than the life of a little girl whose life was taken and the hunt for her murderer.
We live in a society today where people have forgotten what it's like to take care of each other, to band together to ensure the safety of each other.
Riya was only 11 and was abducted by her father, someone who she should have been able to trust and instead of people being concerned, they were complaining. They called the emergency lines, that should have been kept open for tips on the then missing child, to complain about being woken up when it was inconvenient for them. Yet they were able to go to sleep, safe in their own bed, which is something Riya will never be able to do again.
People need to understand that the life of a child is more important than a slight inconvenience of being woken up at night.
Without the amber alert, it's uncertain whether Riya's father and murderer would have been found, as it was the amber alert that allowed a person to recognize his car and tip off police to arrest him. If your sleep is more important than the life of a small child who is unable to protect herself, you should seriously reconsider your priorities. Imagine if that was a child you lived, would you not want as many people woken up and on the alert for any small thing that could save them?
Rooseph Rajkumar has been charged with first-degree murder of his daughter after being caught on Highway 11 after the tip was called to 911. He is in the hospital, suffering from self-inflicted gunshot wounds. He is to appear in court after he is well enough to be released from the hospital.
