GUJRANWALA: Police arrested a woman teacher of a private school on Saturday for her alleged involvement in the kidnapping and murder of four-year-old Zainab, of Popular Nursery locality.

Gujranwala City Police Officer (CPO) Waqas Nazir told a press conference the case was a challenge for police as the public pressure was mounting on them for the immediate arrest of the killers.

He said he made a team under Civil Lines Superintendent of Police Zeeshan Shafique with Deputy Superintend of Police Javed Iqbal, station house officers of People’s Colony and Jinnah Road and an assistant sub-inspector as members.

Zainab was kidnapped on Tuesday from the street of her house and the captors demanded Rs3 million ransom through mobile phone calls for her release. Even though the family paid the ransom, the captors left the body of the girl under a tree near Chicharwali.

The team collected mobile call data on victim Zainab’s father Ansar. With the help of a law-enforcement agency, it emerged the calls were made from a website from the profile of a woman of the locality. Police interrogated the woman, who happened to be illiterate and a servant at a private school. She said she did not know what a computer was.

She said schoolteacher Ayesha Ahmad, also a resident of the locality, had asked her to make calls and demand money. The calls were made from the computer of Ayesha from her house. After verifying her statement, police arrested Ayesha who reportedly confessed to planning the kidnap of the minor girl. She said she was poor and needed some money.

The CPO said they were working for the arrest of the other accused. He did not disclose the identity of the accomplice.

HELD: Police arrested on Saturday 35 youths for blaring loud music, beating drums and aerial firing at a wedding ceremony in Ghakhar Town.

Police later booked 66 more youths for blocking GT Road in protest at the arrest of the wedding guests.

Of the 66 youths, 16 were nominated.

Published in Dawn January 11th , 2014

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