Police have urged parents to ensure their children are supervised at all times after a four-year-old boy was found wandering alone in Dubai.
The child was trying to cross Algeria Street, near Uptown Mirdiff, when a concerned resident came to his aid.
The member of the public brought the boy to Al Rashidiya Police Station.
Officials did not reveal when the incident took place or the nationality of the boy.
“He was scared, crying, and asking to see his mother,” said Lt Col Arif Ali Mohammad, deputy director of Dubai Police’s Crime Prevention Department.
“Police officers gave him toys to calm him down while we searched for his family.”
The force's operations room was alerted in case a report about the child was made through them.
Nearly 45 minutes later, a call from the operations team informed Al Rashidiya police station that the boy’s mother has reported the boy missing.
The mother was asked to come to the police station, where her identity was verified before the child was handed to her.
It was not made clear how the boy had become separated from his family.
Police urged parents to closely monitor their children, particularly when in public places.
Last Friday, a seven-year-old Indian girl was run over when she entered a street in International City in Dubai alone.
The driver of an SUV failed to see her as she moved between a number of cars that were parked on the side of the road.
She was taken to hospital with minor injuries.