Arif, arrested on suspicion of cannibalism, is escorted to a police station in Bhakkar district on April 14, 2014. PHOTO: AFP
The police also installed barbed wire outside the house of the brothers.
The brothers were first arrested in 2011 and after serving time in prison, they were released and allowed to return to their village.
Police had arrested Arif, one of the two brothers, when the head of a toddler was recovered from their derelict home in Kahawar Kalan town near Darya Khan. Officials had conducted a raid when neighbours complained of a putrid stench emanating from the two-bedroom house.
Arif confessed to having cooked and eaten the rest of the body. Although he frequently changed statements, he admitted that the two have been eating human flesh since they were released.
His brother Farman had managed to flee, but was later arrested by police.
A new case under Article 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act; Article 16 of the Maintenance of Public Order as well as 201, 297 and 295-A was registered against the accused in which the police is complainant.
Background
The brothers had returned to the neighbourhood 10 months ago after being released from prison, where they had served a term for stealing and consuming the remains of a girl from the graveyard in 2011.
The trial continued for approximately two years, culminating in a year-long prison term and Rs200,000 fine each. While the sentence ended in May 2013, the brothers were released two months later as they had been incarcerated during the length of the trial.
Last year, during his visit to the Mianwali prison where the brothers were held, then chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry said that the inmates languishing in jails despite having served sentences should be released after the government arranges their fine. Arif and Farman were subsequently discharged.
COMMENTS (24)
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I wonder if the honorable courts of ATC has considered to get a board of psychiatrists set up to assess this man. Its not possible that a person who is in sound mental health will ever do that.. please consider this aspect before torturing him physically in the name of physical remand or putting him in the long ordeal of media trial!
@Ahmed boy you know what is blasphemy? grow up mate. you dont seem to have insight on difference in distruction of a nation and distruction of an individual. This caanibal idiot need to be punished but those who commit blasphemy are the headmasters of Cannibalism Universities. dont comment on what you have no knowledge of.
@Ahmed: What have they done exactly? Dug up dead bodies and eaten them. They haven't harmed any living creature.
Shoot this guy, kill him, syeetttttttt
You eat dead baby's in Pakistan? What's really terrible is that these are repeat offenders who have only served two years in jail for similar crimes ... maybe you guys should spend less time debating the morality of YouTube and focus on the basics.
Eating a dead mans flesh is a trivial crime. I think the prison term was unnecessary, a fine was enough. Now maybe some more fine.
Our Azad adlia will let them go once again. They didn't commit blasphemy! Why charge them at all?