LAHORE: Police claim to have arrested a deaf and dumb young man accused of sexually assaulting a two-year-old girl and killing her by electrocution.

Police further claim to have arrested the suspect’s father, mother, a brother and a relative, saying the man in his twenties has confessed to the offence.

According to Nishtar Colony investigation police, the daughter of Amjad Pervaiz of Nishtar Colony disappeared from outside home on July 6, 2014.

Her electrocuted body was spotted on the roof of Amjad’s neighbour Maqbool in late hours.

Police have registered a case and launched investigation.

A police team headed by the Nishtar Colony circle DSP worked on the case and came to know through the outcome of the postmortem report that the girl was brutally raped before electrocution.

After Amjad raised suspicion over his neighbour, police took Maqbool into custody who stated that his son, Shahzad, assaulted the child when she was playing on the roof. Later, the family electrocuted the girl to cover the offence.

Police acquired the services of a sign language expert to communicate with the suspect. Shahzad finally confessed to raping and killing the girl through electrocution and leaving her body on the roof to give an impression as if she had touched electric wires.

Police also arrested Shahzad’s father Maqbool, mother Bushra besides Ghafoor and Maqsood and sent samples of swabs to the Punjab Forensic Science Laboratory for analysis.

ROBBERIES: Robbers and thieves looted cash and valuables worth approximately Rs3 million in six major hits in the city on Tuesday.

Four robbers forced into the house of Sufyan in Khana Nipal and took away cash, jewellery and other valuables all worth Rs650,000.

Three robbers entered the house of Shahbaz in Al-Madina Colony and escaped after looting cash and jewellery worth Rs400,000.

Three robbers fled after snatching Rs275,000 from the shop owner of Mian Chemicals in Akbari Mandi. Two robbers took away Rs28,000 and a cell phone from a shop of Farrukh in Sahuwari.

Thieves broke into the house of Imran Qamar of Shujaabad Road and fled with Rs100,000 and 30 tolas of gold jewellery worth Rs1.3m.

Unidentified men sneaked into Awan Medical Store in Green Town police precincts and took away cash and goods worth hundreds of thousands.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2014