Woman ‘gang-raped’ in front of husband; arrested suspect ‘killed by accomplices’

HAFIZABAD: A suspect allegedly involved in the gang rape of a woman in front of her husband in Hafizabad was killed by his own accomplices, police claimed on Thursday.

According to the FIR registered at the Kassoki Police Station on June 3, the suspects after raping the woman, allegedly forced her and her husband at gunpoint to engage in sexual intercourse, filmed the act, before they fled.

Local police claimed that the incident occurred over a month ago, but the victim’s husband only registered the case after a video of the alleged gang rape was uploaded on social media by the perpetrators.

The day after the FIR was filed on June 4, police claimed to have taken one suspect into custody but he was found killed under mysterious circumstances with police claiming the suspect was killed by his accomplices during crossfire.

Also read: Two minor sisters allegedly raped in Karachi

CTD Hafizabad in-charge Ijaz Ahmed told the BBC that after the suspect was detained, police were taking him along to arrest the other suspects when his accomplices opened fire on the police to free him. “The suspect was also hit by bullets and died on the spot,” he said.

What does the FIR say?

According to the FIR registered at Kassoki Police Station, the complainant stated that on April 25, he was traveling with his wife on a motorcycle to visit his sister in Nowshera Virkan. On their way back in the evening, his wife got off the bike near a sugar mill to relieve herself.

At that point, an unknown man approached and asked why they had stopped in the area at that hour. The complainant explained the reason, but soon another man arrived, followed shortly by a third.

The complainant stated that the armed suspects then took the couple to a graveyard some distance away, where they stripped both of them. The complainant’s hands and feet were tied, and he was forced to watch as the suspects allegedly gang-raped his wife.

Despite his desperate pleas, the suspects did not stop. One of them recorded the entire incident on video.

The FIR further stated that after raping the woman, the suspects allegedly forced the husband at gunpoint to have sexual intercourse with his wife and filmed that too.

The complainant told the police that the suspects threatened to upload both videos on social media if he took his wife for a medical examination or reported the incident to police.

Fearing public shame, the couple did not initially report the incident. However, when a video was eventually uploaded online, they approached the police for legal action.

The complainant also claimed that the suspects stole two mobile phones, two tolas of gold and Rs 2,500 from them.

What has the police done so far?

Hafizabad District Police Officer (DPO) Atif Nazir said that after the video was shared on social media, he personally contacted the complainant and told him that if he did not file a report, the police would register the case themselves.

According to the DPO, the complainant attempted to trace the perpetrators himself and shared their descriptions with locals, who helped identify four suspects. Their names were subsequently added to the FIR, he said.

SSP Atif Nazir said police have questioned the suspects’ relatives and local residents, and were tracking mobile phone locations and conducting geofencing.

He said that multiple police teams have been formed, and the suspects would be arrested soon.

The DPO also said that the complainant and his family have been provided protection, with officials assigned to guard them.