Gilgit: suspect in rape and death of minor girl with down syndrome arrested

GILGIT: The Gilgit-Baltistan Police have arrested the alleged rapist of a 13-year-old rape victim with Down syndrome from Yasin Valley in the Ghizer district, who passed away after giving birth to a stillborn baby at the Provincial Headquarters Hospital in Gilgit in July last year.

While speaking to HUM News English, G-B DIG Operations Mirza confirmed the news, saying that the alleged suspect confessed to the crime during the preliminary investigation and that DNA samples also matched. DIG Hassan identified the suspect as 50-year-old Muhammad Ayub, a neighbor of the victim.

In July last year, police were alerted to a tragic situation when it was reported that a young girl, who had been sexually assaulted, had died following the delivery of a stillborn baby.

Also read: DNA result delay hampers probe into rape, death of special child in Ghizer

The Yasin Police Station Head Officer and a team were dispatched to Gilgit to investigate the case further. Upon their arrival in Gilgit, the police team discovered that the stillborn baby had already been buried in a local graveyard, while the young girl was fighting for her life in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the hospital. Despite their efforts, the girl succumbed to her condition after remaining in a coma for three days.

During the investigation, the girl’s mother pointed to a relative as a potential suspect. Acting on this lead, the police arrested the relative and collected DNA samples for forensic analysis. However, the relative was later released. The 7-month-old fetus was also exhumed for DNA testing.

Following the arrest, the police sent the initial DNA samples to the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) in Lahore for testing. Later, five additional samples were collected and dispatched for further forensic analysis. However, all six samples came back negative. Three more samples were then sent to Lahore, and one of them came back positive. After receiving the DNA report, the police arrested the suspect, who later confessed to the crime.

Also read: Sexually assaulted special girl from Ghizer dies after giving birth