NAWABSHAH, May 21: The body of a six-year-old boy, who had been strangulated after being subjected to criminal assault, was found in a banana field in Qazi Ahmed on Saturday.

The boy, Waseem, son of Gul Mohammed Khaskheli, had left his house in Pir Abdul Nabi colony on Friday noon to play with his friends but did not return. His relatives mounted a search for him but failed to find him.

The body was taken to Rural Health Centre, Qazi Ahmed where Dr Mohammad Saleh Unnar and Dr Hashim Larik told Dawn that they had conducted post-mortem of the body. They said that the victim had been strangulated after being subjected to criminal assault.

It was a clear case of sexual assault and there was no need of any further chemical examinations however they had taken swabs, they said.

When contacted, head constable Ali Bux of the Qazi Ahmed police station said that the body had been handed over to relatives. He said that no case was lodged and no arrests were made so far.

Child Rights Committee coordinator Zulfiqar Khaskheli said that this was third case of child assault in the district in a week.