A 13-year-old girl was found dead under mysterious circumstances in her house in Quetta's Killi Ismail area, the hospital authorities are claiming that victim was sexually abused before being allegedly murdered.

Details reveal that the brother of the victim found her sister dead inside their home when he returned from work.

"When I came back from bazar I found my sister dead inside a room of our house," Kamran, the elder brother of the victim told the media. "She was an orphan and alone at the time of the incident. My mother and a sister have gone to Punjab."

A high-level police investigation team, comprising senior officers from the special branch, counter-terrorism department and crime branch, has been formed to probe the brutal act. "DNA samples would be sent to Lahore for forensic report," Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jawad Ahmed Tariq said.

An initial report of the incident has been filed at Jinnah Town police station, however, a case has not been registered yet.

Meanwhile, Civil Hospital Quetta spokesman Waseem Baig, where the postmortem examination was conducted, told DawnNews that the child was subjected to rape before being murdered.

However, the SSP refrained from taking a position just yet, maintaining that the case's final report will be shared upon the completion of the investigation.

Balochistan Chief Minister Quddus Bizenjo also took notice of the incident and ordered the police to apprehend the culprit within 48 hours. "The culprit must be brought to book," Bizenjo said.

Since the beginning of 2018, there has been a marked upsurge in the reporting of sexual abuse cases across Pakistan. The brutal rape and murder of Zainab Ansari in Kasur earlier this month, in particular, shocked the entire country, with #JusticeforZainab becoming the rallying cry in a nationwide drive to end violence against children.