Karachi police arrest second suspect in rape and murder of 12-year-old girl

Karachi [Pakistan]September 2 (ANI): Karachi Police on Monday arrested a second suspect in connection with the brutal gang rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl. The victim's body was discovered on August 25, stuffed in a bag and dumped near a garbage dump in the Lucky Star area of ​​the city, Dawn News reported.

An autopsy later confirmed that the girl had been raped and strangled.

The second suspect was arrested during a police “encounter” on Abdul Sattar Edhi Avenue in Ministry of Defence Phase 8. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) for the South, Syed Asad Raza, announced the arrest and said that the suspect was found injured.

However, it remains unclear whether the suspect sustained these injuries during the encounter or whether he was already wounded before the police pursuit, Dawn reported.

DIG Raza further stated that the suspect was wanted in connection with the heinous crime of rape and murder of the 12-year-old girl. After committing the crime, the suspect is said to have dumped the victim's body near Lucky Star.

The DIG also mentioned that an accomplice of the suspect was already arrested last week. This earlier arrest was described by the police as involving the “prime suspect”, who was identified as a security guard at Bara Market near Cantonment Railway Station.

While the main suspect is currently in custody, DIG Raza revealed that two other accomplices, who were employed at the Shalimar bus station, are still at large, Dawn News reported.

The case attracted widespread attention. Both the Governor of Sindh, Kamran Tessori, and Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah took notice of the case and demanded that the police act quickly to bring the perpetrators to justice. The crime shocked the population and increased concerns about the safety of women and children in Karachi.

The incident is part of a broader pattern of sexual violence in the city. According to police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed, who heads the team of forensic officers at Karachi's major hospitals, 522 cases of sexual assault against women and underage girls were reported in Karachi alone in 2023.

In addition, over 4,040 cases of assault on women were reported during the same period and 22 bodies were exhumed for further investigation on court orders, Dawn reported.

The problem of child abuse goes beyond Karachi. In March 2024, the non-governmental organization Sahil, which works for the welfare of children, released data showing that 4,213 cases of child abuse were reported across Pakistan in 2023. The report included cases from all four provinces, as well as the Capital Territory of Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).

A gender analysis of these cases found that 53 percent of the victims were girls and 47 percent were boys. Children between the ages of 6 and 15 were most vulnerable to abuse. In this age group, more boys than girls were victims of abuse.

What is worrying is that even children aged 0 to 5 have been sexually abused.

The report also highlighted that the majority of the perpetrators were people who knew the victims, including relatives, family members, acquaintances and even women who acted as accomplices. (ANI)