Asma Rani murder: Main accused held at Islamabad airport upon arrival from UAE

Mujahid Afridi was arrested in UAE on K-P police’s request

PESHAWAR:  

Mujahid Afridi, prime suspect in the Asma Rani murder case, has been arrested at the Islamabad airport upon his arrival from the UAE, said K-P police PR director Waqar Khan.

In a press release issued on Saturday, he said a police team was sent to the Islamabad airport to arrest Mujahid Afridi upon his arrival from the UAE.

Earlier, Mujahid was arrested in Sharjah by the authorities concerned on the request of K-P police, the statement added.

“We were in constant contact with the UAE police as we had received hints that Mujahid Afridi who had escaped to Saudi Arabia using an Umrah visa had reached the UEA where he had a small business,” said a police official while talking to the Express Tribune.

Rani, a medical student, was fatally injured outside of her house in the Kohat Development Authority Township. Later, in her dying declaration, she had accused Afridi of shooting her with the help of his brother and a friend.

Mujahid Afridi, son of a wealthy man and nephew of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) district leader in Kohat, had apparently targeted Rani after she refused his marriage proposal.



The ill-fated medical student had come from Abbottabad to Kohat, her hometown, during her holidays.

The accused, who was already married and had a business in the UAE, managed to escape to Saudi Arabia on the day of the incident from the Islamabad airport using an Umrah visa.

After his escape, the K-P police had approached the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and asked it to approach Interpol for the arrest of the suspect in Saudi Arabia.

The brutal murder and the accused’s escape had sent a shockwave across the country. His brother and a friend, both co-accused, were later arrested by the Kohat police and interrogated. The police had also recovered the gun used in the murder based on information provided by the co-accused.