Suspects held for killing two kids to avenge brother’s murder

Police have found that the two minors whose decomposing bodies were found at a graveyard in New Karachi on Friday were murdered by two of their uncles to exact revenge from the children’s mother.

The investigating officials said on Saturday that the minors have been identified as 10-year-old Ali Raza and his eight-year-old brother Azan. They said the children had been abducted around a week ago while they were playing outside their house in Sector 11-D of New Karachi.

FIR No. 310/19 of their kidnapping was registered at the New Karachi police station on October 22 after the family held a protest demonstration against the abduction. Their father, namely Ilyas, had nominated two of his relatives: Rafiq Hussain, alias Sona, and Nafees Hussain, alias Sunny.

The nominated suspects, who were arrested by the police following the registration of the FIR, are brothers of the late husband of the deceased children’s mother.

According to the initial investigation, the arrested suspects’ brother had died under mysterious circumstances some 11 years ago, but the suspects believed that their brother’s wife had murdered him through electric shocks to marry Ilyas, and so they killed the minors in revenge.

Ilyas, however, appealed to the authorities to take stern action against the suspects. He told the media that he had five children, of whom Raza had been the eldest and Azan the youngest. Raza was a grade-1 student, while the family had been preparing for Azan’s admission.

The father said the children’s bodies had been decomposed beyond recognition, and the family had identified them through their clothes. He said the kids had gone missing on October 20 while playing outside their home. “We searched everywhere, but couldn’t find them,” he said, and accused the police of not cooperating with the family.

The children’s decomposing bodies had been found from a graveyard in New Karachi No. 6. They had been disfigured completely, because of which it was difficult to conduct their proper examination or ascertain the cause of their deaths. However, it was found that they were killed after severe torture.

New Karachi Division SP

Altaf Hussain told The News that the post-mortem examination of the bodies had been conducted and their DNA samples were also taken to confirm their identities.

He said that one of the children who had been playing with the minors had also identified the arrested suspects, saying that the men had taken them away and then they had not returned.

“The overall circumstances suggest that the arrested suspects are responsible for the abductions and murders of the minor brothers, as all the evidences are against them,” explained SP Hussain. He said that further investigation is under way, as the suspects are in physical remand and being interrogated.