14-year-old UP boy leaves home to complete PUBG task promising Rs 1 lakh, found asleep on bus three days later

A 14-year-old Class 8 student from Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh, who allegedly left home on October 2 to complete a PUBG gaming task that he believed could earn him Rs 1 lakh, was found asleep on a Roadways bus in Mathura district three days later, police told TOI. The boy had intended to travel to Gwalior for the purported task but lost his way and reached Indore before travelling back towards Mathura.

His disappearance had prompted his family to fear that he had been kidnapped. Police eventually traced him using CCTV footage and mobile phone surveillance and safely reunited him with his family.

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October 2: Boy leaves home for gaming task

According to police, the boy left his Firozabad home on October 2 carrying his school bag. He reportedly believed that completing a PUBG-related task could earn him Rs 1 lakh and set out for Gwalior to complete it.

However, he lost his way during the journey and ended up in Indore, hundreds of kilometres from his home.

After the boy failed to return, his family approached the South police station and reported him missing.

Police trace movements through CCTV, mobile surveillance

Following the missing-person report, police teams examined CCTV footage and monitored the boy’s mobile phone location. The surveillance led investigators to Indore.

Police coordinated with their counterparts in Indore and continued tracking the boy’s movements as he travelled towards Mathura.

The boy was eventually traced on October 5, when police found him asleep inside a Roadways bus travelling on the Mathura-Firozabad road in Mathura district.

South police station SHO Yogendra Pal Singh said the boy was recovered safely and reunited with his family.

SP City Ravishankar Prasad said, “The missing student was traced with the help of surveillance and CCTV footage.”

Police link gaming habit to disappearance

Police said the boy had become increasingly dependent on mobile gaming following his father’s death and was spending considerable time playing online games.

After his safe recovery, local residents felicitated the police team. Officers also urged parents to monitor children’s mobile-phone use and online activities.

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Earlier cases involving online challenges

The incident comes amid earlier cases in which children have reportedly left home after being influenced by online games or challenges.

In August 2026, two children aged 11 and 7 in Meerut reportedly left home after watching a YouTube “24-hour challenge”. They hid near a farmhouse before police found them safely. That incident was not linked to PUBG.

In 2020, a 17-year-old Class 11 student reportedly left his home in Solan after attempting to complete a PUBG task and travelled to Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Police traced him using mobile-location information and with the help of another PUBG player before bringing him home.