On Tuesday, a suspect facing allegations of the rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl was killed after his own accomplices opened fire on the police in a bid to free him from custody.
According to the police, the suspect, who was indeed the victim’s maternal uncle, had been apprehended the previous night and was being taken for the recovery of evidence when the assailants shot at the police party, injuring the suspect who succumbed to his injuries while being transported to the hospital.
Providing details of the case, the police stated that the suspect was a drug addict — specifically of ice — and resided near the victim’s home.
He had taken the girl to a building under construction where he attempted to rape her. However, he murdered her due to the victim’s resistance and then raped the girl, the police further added.
The suspect subsequently returned home and joined the family’s search for the deceased child before being included in the investigation due to suspicious behavior and later confessing to his crime while in custody.
This rape case should be viewed within the context of increasing incidents of sexual violence, with Islamabad — neighboring Rawalpindi — reporting a higher number of gang rape cases than Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
Crime statistics reported by The News reveal that a total of 11,074 murder cases, 2,142 gang rape cases, 4,472 Zina (adultery/fornication) cases, and 34,688 kidnapping/abduction cases occurred nationwide in 2024.
Punjab reported the highest number of cases for murder, gang rape, attempted murder, Zina, and kidnapping in the country.
A total of 2,142 cases of gang rape emerged across Pakistan in the past year, 2024. Punjab reported 2,046 of these cases, while Sindh reported 71. In KP, one gang rape and 402 Zina cases were recorded in the past year. In contrast, Balochistan reported no gang rape cases and 43 Zina cases.
In Islamabad, a total of 22 gang rape cases and 125 Zina cases were reported. Gilgit-Baltistan reported one case of gang rape. Lastly, AJK reported a total of 33 Zina cases and no gang rape cases in 2024, as reflected in officially reported crime statistics.
