The house was searched after seven-member family killed in a fire incident. STOCK IMAGE
RAWALPINDI: Police recovered 1,000 grams of gold from a house in Chakala Scheme-III where a family of seven died in a house fire on June 17.
The deceased, Shaukat Ashraf, 35, his wife Ayesha Ashraf, 32, and their children Hassan, 14, Umar, 10, Mohsin, 8, Usman, 6 and Fatima, 4, were killed in the fire, which rescue officials belive was caused by a short circuit.
Police now suspect that an ongoing property dispute in the family might have something to do with the fire, hinting that the incident may qualify as an arson attack. According to the police, the family was residing in the upper storey of the house, while Shaukat’s brother-in-law, Anjum, lived on the ground floor.
Police said they searched the house at the request of the deceased’s relatives and recovered a kilogramme of gold and property documents.
Police have taken the gold and documents into custody, as they are evidence in the investigation.
DSP Farhan Aslam said the police were investigating whether the fire was accidental or man-made. They are also investigating Shaukat’s brother.
Meanwhile, the police are still waiting for the forensic and postmortem reports to be completed and released to them.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 27th, 2015.
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