One of the main suspects in the Mashal Khan lynching case, Imran Ali, has confessed his crime before a judicial magistrate in Mardan, police sources said Saturday.

Imran, who police said was responsible for shooting Mashal Khan, was nabbed earlier this week.

His confession came two days after Mardan's Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Mohammad Alam Shinwari announced his arrest.

The DIG said Ali was Khan's class fellow and a student in the university's journalism department. He added that the pistol with which Ali shot Khan had also been recovered and the suspected had "accepted his crime" during investigation and interrogation.

Ali, who hails from the Palai area of the Malakand division, was produced before the media with his face concealed with a piece of cloth.

In his statement before the court, Imran alleged that the university administration of Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan (AWKUM) was also involved in the case.

Mashal, 23, a student of AWKUM was shot and beaten to death by a violent mob on university premises on April 13.

Police officials said that he had been accused of running Facebook pages "which allegedly published blasphemous content".

Police had arrested five more suspects in the Mashal lynching case on April 28, with the total number of detained persons rising to 47.