QUETTA: The body of a 14-year-old student, Muhammad Musawir Kakar, who was kidnapped for ransom on November 15, 2024 has been recovered by the police, Quetta DIG Aitzaz Ahmed Goraya said on Friday.

He revealed that Afghan nationals were involved in the kidnapping. They abducted the boy with the help of local accomplices and later handed him over to the extremist group Daesh, also known as IS, which demanded a ransom of $12m from the victim’s father.

The DIG added that after killing the boy, the kidnappers buried his body in the Maro Isplinji area of Mastung district. The grave was located by the police.

The body appeared to be over two months old, he said, adding the postmortem report revealed the boy was shot in the chest and head. His identity was confirmed through DNA testing.

“We tracked down the kidnappers, raided multiple locations, and eliminated some of them, but unfortunately, we were unable to ensure the safe recovery of the boy, for which we are deeply sorry,” said DIG Goraya.

He added that the investigation traced phone calls made from Iranian and Afghan numbers, and authorities were able to locate the hideouts.

The DIG said that on Nov 20 last year, the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and Frontier Corps raided a suspected hideout in Dasht, where a militant detonated explosives, injuring CTD personnel and damaging a vehicle.

DIG Goraya claimed that the facilitators, including those who provided logistical and technical support to kidnappers, have also been arrested.

He said the vehicle used in the kidnapping was also recovered just two days later.

Published in Dawn, June 28th, 2025