Cleo Smith abductor Terence jailed for 13 years

Kathmandu: Child abductor Terence Kelly has been jailed for 13 years and 6 months. Perth District Court found Terence guilty of abducting 4-year-old Cleo Smith in October 2021.

Terence even confessed that he used to level up the volume of the radio in order to drown the voice of Cleo pleading for her mother.

Terence had kept Cleo for entire 18 days in a bedroom of his house. The door of the room was modified in such a way that it can be locked from the outside.

He needs to serve more than 11 years in order to be eligible for parole. Terence had abducted Cleo from from a tent, 900 kilometers north of Perth, at a Western Australia WA campsite.

More than 100 police officers operated for searching Kelly. A phone tower had traced a mobile phone number near the campsite when Terence had abducted Cleo. This became a prime clue for the investigation.

Cleo was found alive after 18 days in the locked house of Terence. Police arrested Terence and he accepted stealing the child. Cleo happily introduced herself to the police.

Later, it was found that Terence had been through several childhood traumas and was methamphetamine user. This had drawn the global attention.