CHITRAL: Chitral police have arrested all the four persons suspected to be involved in a triple murder case.

A young man and his pregnant wife were shot dead by unidentified persons when they were returning to their Garam Chashma village after visiting a doctor in Chitral city some days ago.

District police officer Waseem Riaz Khan, told a press conference here on Saturday that the prime suspect, Attaur Rahman of Sheringal, Upper Dir, was a hired assassin and was engaged by the woman’s relatives to kill Waqar Ahmed.

The woman had married Ahmed without the consent of her family.

The DPO said the murder was a rare incident in a peaceful and tranquil place like Chitral and posed a challenge to the local police, but they tactfully handled the case leading to arrest of the culprits in a short span of one week.

He said the police also recovered the vehicle, the pistol and other allied articles used in the crime.

The police officer said Rehman had confessed to the crime, adding that the remaining three suspects were arrested on the tip he provided.

The three suspects were named Khurshid, Hujjaj and Hamza.

Riaz Khan said the main accused started residing in the neighbourhood of the couple along with his family some months ago and the two families had become so intimate that a day before the incident they had gone together to Golen valley on a picnic.

The police officer said the accused was residing in the area under a fake name, while the SIM of his mobile phone had been registered in the name of the murdered person.

“Rehman had been hired to commit the murder for Rs1.5 million, out of which, Rs300,000 had been paid to him. The police recovered Rs200,000 from his possession,” he said.

He said a special investigation team had been constituted to make the investigation process and prosecution a success. The accused persons were also produced before the media.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2019