People gather around the residence of the ill-fated family that lost 10 members to an alleged property dispute in Silkot.—Dawn

The accused who fled after committing homicides was assisted by his wife and one of his nephews in committing the brutal murders, according to police sources. 

Initial police investigation has revealed the murders were committed by more than one person with some sharp-edged weapons in the wee hours when the victims - Javaid, his wife Fehmida and their children Kubra (4), Naveed (9), Rehman Javaid (6), Ibrahim (5), Rimsha (4), Aysha (3), Ismail (2) and eight-month-old Aleena — were in their sleep.
 
Abdul Rasheed, head of the joint family, who was the first to witness the bodies and inform the neighbourhood of the gory incident, told police his younger son, Zafar Gujjar, committed the homicides over a dispute involving the family land.

Giving details of the dispute, the old man said his accused son had a simmering grudge against his elder brother over the latter`s occupation of the front portion of the 40-acre piece of family land which had already been distributed among his (Rasheed`s) four sons - Javaid, Zafar, Nazeer and Muhammad Husain, who was living abroad.

He said the accused would often quarrel with the victim over the issue.  DPO Capt Mohammad Ameen (retired) told journalists the Satrah police had arrested the wife of accused Tahira Bibi and two other people in connection with the murders after registering a case on the report of Fehmida Bibi`s brother Anwarul Haq.

The police had also recovered the blood-stained clothes of the accused, the DPO added.  Autopsies of the dead were conducted at Daska THQ Civil Hospital and the bodies were handed over to the heirs who buried them in the village graveyard amid tight security.