A security guard was arrested in Karachi on charges of killing a seven-year-old girl after it was found that the stray bullet that led to her death was fired from his rifle, police officials said on Thursday.

“The police have received the forensic report, which confirmed that the bullet fired from the guard’s rifle killed the girl,” a statement issued by the police stated.

According to it, suspect Ali Raza, 43, was employed at a restaurant in the Sharea Noorjehan area near Buffer Zone.

In the afternoon today, the suspect opened gunfire on two “suspicious robbers”. “During the firing, the suspicious persons managed to escape while one of the bullets hit a seven-year-old girl who was traveling in a car along with her family,” the statement said.

It stated that the police had taken the guard into custody, seized his rifle, recovered two bullet casings, and sent them to the forensic science lab.

The police also collected evidence from the spot, obtained CCTV footage and recorded statements of the witnesses, the statement added.

It added that the victim’s father had refused to lodge the first information report, therefore, the police had registered a case against the detained guard on behalf of the state under section 319 (unintentional murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code and initiated an investigation.

Earlier, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Central Faisal Chachar told Dawn.com that the body was moved to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

In a visit to the area alongside Rangers personnel, the official said the gunshot was fired by an armed suspect in the locality. “The suspect was allegedly running after a person with a gun in his hand,” he said.

“A four-member team headed by the Gulberg police superintendent has been constituted to probe the incident,” Chachar added.

Separately, Taimuria police officer Ghulam Murtaza told Dawn.com that the girl, identified as Maryam, was traveling in a car with her father when the incident occurred.

Meanwhile, Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori expressed grief over the minor girl’s death and directed the Karachi police chief to prepare a detailed report of the incident.