Death and divorce: 9-year-old poisons parents and himself

ROHILANWALI: A nine-year-old primary school student committed suicide on Sunday after allegedly killing his parents.

According to police officials, Busti Beet Wala resident Saif Sultan’s father Saleem and his mother Parveen had recently told him that they were going to get a divorce. Neighbours told the police that the young boy was extremely depressed about the situation and had fought with his parents for the past two days. On Monday, Saif allegedly poisoned his parents by putting liquid cleaner in their drink. The boy later drank acid himself and died. Neighbours brought the family to the local THQ Hospital and doctors said that all three people were dead on arrival. “They have all definitely been poisoned but we are conducting autopsies to confirm what happened,” said attending physician Dr Bilal. Police officials have registered the case and are investigating the incident. “It is a very shocking case but it seems as if the boy was responsible for the incident,” said SHO Naeem Qadri.

“We have been collecting evidence and conducting an investigation but neighbours and other family members said that the boy was extremely upset and had stopped speaking to anyone,” Qadri said. Police said that they were waiting on a conclusive autopsy report to know what really happened.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 3^rd, 2011.