RAWALPINDI:
A Christian man, who was involved in the alleged abduction, rape and murder of his seven-year-old maternal niece on the day of Easter in the Panch Marla Scheme area, was killed by his own accomplices during a cross fire with police on Tuesday.
Mandra police said that the suspect identified as Sumbal Basharat was an ice addict. Police investigations revealed that the suspect first cut the girl’s throat with scissors when she made a noise during the alleged rape attempt and then strangled her to death. After the heinous act of allegedly raping the girl, the suspect came home and together with the family kept staging a drama of finding the girl.
The police conducted an investigation into the suspicious activities which led the accused’s confession to the crime within a few minutes.
A police team was taking the accused to recover the murder weapon when the accused’s accomplices resisted to free the accused near Mureed Phatak. The suspect was injured in the firing by his accomplices while the police team remained safe. The injured accused was shifted to a hospital but he could not survive.
A case of kidnapping, alleged rape and murder was registered at the Mandera police station on the complaint of the victim’s father, a resident of the five-marla scheme.
Police officials said that the police were busy searching for the accused’s absconding accomplices.
According to the police, Sunil was addicted to ice and lived near the victim’s house. He lured the girl to an under-construction building on Easter day using food and drink. When the girl screamed, the brutal accused cut the girl’s throat with scissors and then hit the girl on the head with a brick and then strangled her to death. He raped the girl after the murder.
The victim’s father, Nauman Farzan Masih, stated that he has two daughters and two sons, with the eldest being seven-year-old victim. On the day of the incident, relatives were visiting the house for a community Eid gathering. Around 3pm, the girl went outside to play near the house. When she didn’t return by 6pm, the family began searching for her.
After failing to get any information from neighbours and relatives, the father, along with his wife and brother-in-law, continued searching and eventually reached the upper floor of an under-construction house in the neighbourhood, owned by a man named Shoaib. There, in a room resembling a washroom or storage area, they found Shafaq’s lifeless body. There were visible injuries on her neck and forehead, he said.
Rawalpindi City Police Officer (CPO) Syed Khalid Hamdani praised the police team for arresting the accused within 24 hours in the tragic incident.
Women and children were the red line and crimes against them are intolerable, he said, adding the accused involved in crimes against children would be dealt with an iron fist.
