Accused confess to rape, murder of 7-year-old

The accused said he had "gone astray" and murdered the child out of fear of being exposed after the assault

KARACHI:

Two men accused of kidnapping and murdering a seven-year-old boy in Landhi confessed to the crime before a judicial magistrate on Friday. The court subsequently remanded both suspects to jail.

Police produced the suspects, Ahsan and Sohail Qureshi, before the judicial magistrate for District East after the expiry of their physical remand. Their confessional statements were recorded under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, in which they admitted abducting, assaulting and killing the minor before dumping his body in a sack.

In his statement, Ahsan said he had "gone astray" and murdered the child out of fear of being exposed after the assault. He admitted striking the victim with a concrete block, strangling him when he was still alive, and then hitting him again until he succumbed. Qureshi also confessed to his involvement in the crime.

According to police, the boy's body was recovered from Landhi on Sept 18, the same day a kidnapping case had been lodged at the Landhi police station.

Outside the courtroom, complainant's counsel Advocate Jahangir Kalhoro told the media that further investigation was necessary to bring other suspects to justice. The victim's family also alleged that Qureshi's wife and son-in-law were complicit, claiming it was the son-in-law who had informed the Chhipa ambulance service about the body's location. They demanded their immediate arrest, warning that such heinous crimes would persist if all culprits were not held accountable.