Case remanded back to lower court

A division bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC)'s Rawalpindi Bench on Tuesday sent the renowned murder case of US national Wajiha Swati back to the Rawalpindi district and sessions court for retrial.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan and Justice Mirza Waqas Rauf ordered the transfer of the case because of incomplete testimonies.

Ms Swati was brutally murdered and her body desecrated by her ex-husband and ex-father-in-law after being invited to Pakistan from the US in an attempt to usurp property worth billions.

The court decided that the accused would remain in custody. US diplomats were also present in the courtroom during the hearing of the accused's appeal.

Swati's ex-husband Rizwan Habib and father-in-law Haritullah had called the victim from the US to Pakistan under the pretence of resolving property disputes and legal negotiations. The unfortunate victim arrived in Pakistan on October 16, 2021, at Morgah, Rawalpindi. The same night, the two accused along with their employees, brutally murdered her, hid the body beneath the carpet, and later took it from Rawalpindi to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) for burial.

The suspects then falsely claimed that she had gone missing. However, after the investigation was transferred and the ex-husband was arrested, he confessed to the murder during his initial remand.

The body was later recovered from K-P. On November 13, 2022, an Additional District and Sessions Judge sentenced Rizwan to death and imposed a fine of Rs500,000. However, Haritullah and employee Sultan were sentenced to seven years in prison and fined Rs100,000 each for disposing of the body.