RAWALPINDI: A suspect accused of sexually assaulting and murdering his 15-year-old niece was killed in an alleged encounter with the Crime Control Department (CCD), police said on Tuesday.
The suspect, identified as Mumrez Abbasi and a resident of Abbottabad, was killed during an exchange of gunfire near Alamabad Stop, close to Children’s Park, within the jurisdiction of Ratta Amral Police Station, according to police.
Police said two alleged accomplices escaped during the incident, prompting a search operation to locate and arrest them. A .30-bore pistol and ammunition were reportedly recovered from the deceased suspect.
According to investigators, the suspect was accused of taking his niece to his residence after she left home to attend a madrassa, sexually assaulting her and strangling her to death. Her body was later recovered from the residence.
Footage reportedly showing the suspect meeting the girl on a street and giving her money before the incident had also surfaced, police said.
A murder case was registered at Pirwadhai Police Station on the complaint of the girl’s father. The CCD had been assigned responsibility for investigating the case and apprehending the suspect three days earlier. The search for the two alleged accomplices remains ongoing.