Nairobi — Detectives have rescued a six-year-old girl who had been reported missing earlier this week, even as a manhunt for her kidnapper gets underway.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said Thursday the child was rescued during a joint operation involving detectives and the Kibra Sarang'ombe community policing team.

The girl disappeared on September 22 after being picked up from school by an unidentified person. A report was immediately filed at Runda Police Station, but initial efforts to trace her proved unsuccessful.

Her mother later received a message from an unknown number demanding a ransom of Sh300,000 for the child's release.

"Investigators immediately launched a forensic-led operation that directed them to the Soweto slums in Kibra," DCI said in a statement.

There, officers found the girl sleeping inside an unfinished church building, wrapped in worn-out beddings. Detectives said the suspect had fled moments before the rescue, abandoning the child.

At the scene, officers recovered the girl's school uniform and shoes. She was immediately taken to a medical facility, where she is receiving care and observation.

Meanwhile, security agencies have intensified the hunt for the suspect.