“We have him.”

Those were the first words uttered by Calgary Police Service Domestic Violence Team Sgt. Scott Mizibrocky, when he reached, by phone, the mom of a boy abducted from Calgary two years ago.

On Dec. 3, 2023, a man allegedly took his five-year-old son, without permission or authority, with him from Calgary to Montreal and then to Turkiye in a cross-continental caper that ended two-years later in the East African country of Mauritius.

“The suspect immediately cut off all contact with his son’s mother and three other children,” said Mizibrocky.

“Evidence gathered when the suspect left Canada indicated the abduction had been extensively planned with the suspect purchasing property overseas, acquiring new passports, and relying on forged documents.”

Several law enforcement agencies, including the RCMP, the Canadian Central Authority, Interpol and authorities in Mauritius, along with Global Affairs Canada, contributed to cracking the case.

On Dec. 16, 2025, due to an alert issued by Interpol, the suspect and the boy, now seven, were spotted at the international airport in Mauritius, where they were taken into custody.

The mother was reunited with her son on Dec. 20, 2025, and the accused, Muhammad Zia-Ur Rahman, 62, was taken into custody and extradited back to Calgary on Jan. 17, 2026.

Mizibrocky said they believe the accused and the son had travelled or lived in Turkiye, Russia, Azerbaijan, and Vanuatu. Other countries were also involved.

There’s evidence to suggest the accused attempted to create a new identity for his son, Mizibrocky said.  

There was also difficulty tracking the pair due to a lack of cooperation from some of the countries.

“We weren’t getting proper cooperation from foreign countries,” Sgt. Mizibrocky said.

“Not all countries abide by the same laws that we do as Canadians, and obviously, once we got Interpol involved, there’s a process that they took to confirm the identities of the children and the father and just took time for that process to take place.”

Child back in school, doing well

Mizibrocky said that he got the call from Interpol at home around 1 a.m.

“I was in total disbelief. I was in shock. There’s a bit of awkward silence between me and Interpol, because I didn’t believe this day would actually come,” he said.

He credited the authorities in Mauritius for their work.

“Without them, without their cooperation, we wouldn’t be here today,” Mizibrocky said.

When the boy returned, it was around Christmas vacation, and he had time to reacquaint himself with his family, including two siblings. The reunion was the first time the boy had contact with his family in Canada for two years.

Now he’s back in school.

“I personally have visited the family a couple of times since his return,” Mizibrocky said.

“The child, he’s quite happy. He’s playing with siblings. He’s laughing, playing video games, just what you expect from a seven-year-old child.”

Mizibrocky said the investigation is ongoing, including into how Rahman is alleged to have obtained forged documents and identification.

Rahman is currently facing one count of parental child abduction and remains in custody. As the investigation continues, more charges could be laid, according to Mizibrocky.