18 October 2004	Monday	03 Ramazan 1425

KARACHI, Oct 17: The couple suspected of having killed producer and TV artist Afreen Baig has been arrested. Police brought Mohammad Bux and his wife Zahida to the city from Punjab on Sunday.

"The couple has confessed that they had strangled Afreen and escaped by a PIA flight to Lahore," DIG Investigation Manzoor Mughal told Dawn.

The body of Afreen Baig was found floating in the bathtub in her house in Clifton. The doctor who examined the body said that marks of abrasion were found on her wrist and ankles which suggested that her hands and legs had been tied before she was killed. Similar marks were also found on her neck.

Mr Mughal said that Zahida, hailing from Punjab, had been hired as housemaid about three years back. Mohammad Bux, who belongs to Tamboo, Naseerabad (Balochistan), was hired about one-and-a-half years later as domestic servant. They got married nine months back.

The police official said the couple told investigators that they murdered Afreen because they were sick of her rude behaviour and decided to take revenge.

On Wednesday night, they tied Afreen's hands and legs while she was in her bedroom, and forced her to sign a cheque for Rs280,000. They strangled her at around 2am on Thursday and dumped her body in the bathtub.

In the morning, they got the cheque encashed and proceeded to a PIA booking office and after getting tickets, flew to Lahore.

Mr Mughal said that the police had recovered the cash, jewellery (including a diamond ring), a wristwatch and two suitcases of expensive clothes.

He said the ropes used in the incident had also been recovered on the lead provided by the suspects. Police are collecting more evidences before seeking the suspects' remand from a court.