Elderly man tortured over financial dispute

A 70-year-old man was brutally assaulted by his neighbours, leaving him unconscious, in the Qaimpur area, reportedly over a financial dispute.

According to residents, the victim, Hafeez Sajid, of the Fordwah area in Bahawalpur, has a son, Waqar, working in Malaysia with one of his neighbours, Shahroz Arshad. A financial dispute arose between the two, leading Shahroz to return to Pakistan. After his return, Shahroz's brothers reportedly began threatening Waqar's father, Hafeez Sajid.

A few days ago, Asif, Shahroz, and Adeel abducted the elderly man in broad daylight and took him to their outhouse, where they subjected him to torture while filming his ordeal.

During the assault, they took Hafeez Sajid's mobile phone and made a video call to his son in Malaysia, showing him his father being tortured. The son was seen pleading and begging them to release his father.

The torture caused the elderly man to fall unconscious. After some residents intervened and pleaded with the attackers, the accused released Hafeez Sajid, but not before threatening him further.

Following the circulation of the video on social media, SHO Ayub Gujar of Qaimpur Police Station registered a case against the suspects, and they were arrested as legal proceedings got under way.