Multan teen killing: main suspect killed in encounter after fleeing custody

LAHORE: The main suspect accused of deliberately running over and killing 15-year-old Waseem Abbas in Multan was killed in an encounter with the Crime Control Department (CCD) in Bahawalpur after allegedly escaping police custody a day earlier, officials said on Wednesday.

According to a CCD official, on request of anonymity, said that Tauqeer Nazir, the principal suspect in the teenager’s killing, escaped from the custody of CCD Multan on Tuesday night.

It was told that CCD team in Bahawalpur later attempted to stop two suspicious men riding a motorcycle. Instead of stopping, the men allegedly opened fire on the team.

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The CCD said an exchange of fire followed, during which one of the motorcycle riders was killed. He was later identified as Tauqeer Nazir.

According to the department, Tauqeer’s accomplice managed to escape from the scene while firing at the CCD team.

The spokesperson said Tauqeer was wanted in connection with the killing of Waseem, an orphaned teenager who was allegedly run over by a car in a private housing society in Multan a day earlier.

The circumstances of Tauqeer’s escape from custody and the encounter in Bahawalpur were not immediately detailed beyond the CCD’s account.

Post-mortem details severe head and facial injuries

A post-mortem report of Waseem Abbas also surfaced on Wednesday, providing further details of the injuries he suffered. According to the report, Waseem’s body was taken to Nishtar Hospital at around 8:30pm for examination.

The post-mortem found that his face had been badly disfigured, with deep injuries to the left side of his head and face. The report also said the teenager had suffered fractures to his skull, jaw and nasal bone. Abrasion injuries were also found on his right knee.

The medical findings add to the police account that Waseem suffered severe trauma after being struck by the vehicle and thrown against a structure at the scene.

FIR alleged car was deliberately driven at Waseem

The case had already taken a more serious turn after police registered a murder case against Tauqeer Nazir and another man, Amjad Ali.

According to the first information report (FIR), registered at DHA Police Station on the complaint of Sub-Inspector Liaquat Ali, the suspects allegedly drove a car at Waseem with the intention of killing him.

The FIR stated that the vehicle struck the teenager and that his head hit a pillar of a house, causing fatal injuries.

Police also alleged that the suspects tried to flee after the vehicle failed to restart.

According to the FIR, an eyewitness apprehended Tauqeer at the scene, while the second suspect escaped.

The police version, however, differed from an account attributed to Tauqeer in a video that later circulated on social media.

Suspect had claimed vehicle ‘slipped’

In the video, Tauqeer claimed that Waseem had run away from the work site after refusing to listen to his instructor.

He said the teenager had run away on previous occasions as well and had been brought back.

Tauqeer further claimed that the vehicle slipped while they were trying to block Waseem’s path.

Police did not accept that account in the FIR, which treated the incident as an intentional killing.

The case drew wider attention after videos purportedly showing the suspect and eyewitnesses began circulating online, raising questions over the sequence of events leading up to Waseem’s death.

Waseem had been living at an orphanage

The administration of a private orphanage said Waseem had been living at the facility and had recently been sent to learn electrical work under contractor Tauqeer.

His cousin Nadeem, who also lives at the orphanage, said Waseem had expressed reluctance about going to the electrician and had said he wanted to return home.

According to Nadeem, Waseem had stopped regularly returning to the orphanage after he began learning electrical work.

Nadeem said he did not personally know Tauqeer and had never met him.

Waseem’s maternal grandfather had also spoken to the media after the killing, saying he was the person who had placed the teenager in the orphanage and madrassa in the hope that he could receive education and build a better future.

The family had demanded justice and accountability over the circumstances surrounding his death.

Funeral held late at night

Waseem’s funeral prayers were offered late at night in Mauza Daulatpur before he was buried in his ancestral graveyard.

According to those associated with the orphanage, the funeral was held soon after the body was received because of its condition.

Only close relatives and representatives of the orphanage attended the funeral prayers.

The teenager’s killing, the conflicting accounts surrounding how he was struck by the vehicle, and Tauqeer’s subsequent escape from custody had already made the case the subject of public attention before the CCD announced the suspect’s death in the Bahawalpur encounter.

Authorities have not yet provided details about how Tauqeer escaped custody, the identity of the man who allegedly accompanied him during the encounter, or whether Amjad Ali, the second suspect named in the FIR, has been arrested.

HRCP raises alarm over surge in Punjab police encounter deaths

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) accused Punjab’s Crime Control Department of presiding over a dramatic rise in alleged extrajudicial killings after the specialised unit was created in April 2025 to tackle organised crime.

According to an HRCP fact-finding report, at least 670 police encounters led to 924 suspected deaths between April and December 2025. The rights body described the pattern as systemic and said the number of fatalities far exceeded earlier encounter trends in the province. Pasted markdown

The CCD was established under the Punjab government’s “Safe Punjab” initiative and tasked with targeting serious crime, inter-district gangs and repeat offenders. However, HRCP said the number of police encounters rose sharply soon after the department began operations. More than 900 suspects were killed within eight months, compared with 341 encounter deaths recorded across Punjab and Sindh combined during all of 2024. Pasted markdown

Lahore recorded the highest concentration of such incidents, followed by Faisalabad and Sheikhupura. Most of those killed had been accused in cases involving dacoity, robbery, narcotics or murder. Pasted markdown

HRCP also raised concerns over the similarity of police accounts filed after many encounters. It said official reports repeatedly followed the same pattern: suspects were described as travelling suspiciously, usually on motorcycles, opening fire first, and then being killed in retaliatory shooting while accomplices escaped. The commission said recurring language across different districts and cases suggested formulaic reporting rather than individually documented incidents. Pasted markdown

The CCD has rejected the allegations and says its operations are intelligence-led and have helped dismantle organised criminal networks. It has also claimed substantial reductions in property crime and dacoity-related killings. Pasted markdown

HRCP, however, argues that even a fall in crime cannot justify bypassing due process. The commission said questions remain over independent investigations, post-mortem procedures and accountability, while Punjab Police did not provide requested data on encounter practices. Pasted markdown

The report places the CCD controversy within a longer history of police encounters in Pakistan, noting that nearly 5,000 such cases were recorded nationwide over the decade to 2024, with almost 2,000 in Punjab alone