By Faraz Khan

KARACHI: Police on Friday found the body of a teenage girl, who was raped, brutally tortured and her head shaved before being strangled to death.

The body of the girl, around 14 or 15 years of age, was found outside House no R-19, Railway Housing Society, Block 13-D-1, within the jurisdiction of the Gulshan-e-Iqbal police station.

The police found the body at around 12 pm after some people informed them about a suspicious bag lying outside their house.

“We found the girl’s body in the bag,” said Assistant Sub-Inspector Mustafa Lasi. “The body had not decayed which means it might have been dumped around six or seven hours ago before we found it. The girl’s hands and legs were tied with her dupatta.”

The police then shifted the body to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for legal formalities where lady MLO Dr Zakia said the culprits subjected the victim to gang rape before killing her.

The doctor said the culprits had also brutally tortured the victim, as the body had torture marks on the neck, head, chest and other parts. “The body also had marks of cigarette burns and her head was shaved. The culprits later strangled her to death.”

The body of the girl, who was wearing a green shalwar and white kameez was then shifted to the Edhi morgue, Sohrab Goth for identification.

“We are trying hard to find her heirs. The initial investigation suggests that the girl was not a resident of the area from where her body was found,” Station Investigation Officer Shahid Qureshi said.

“It appears that she belongs to an Urdu or Punjabi speaking family.” The police on behalf of the state have registered an FIR against unidentified culprits and initiated further investigation.

It is pertinent to mention that about 65 rape and 45 gang rape cases have taken place in the city in the present year. These figures show a rising trend in such crimes since 59 rape and 27 gang rape cases and 35 rape and eight gang rape cases took place in 2008 and 2007, respectively.
Source: Dawn
Date:12/26/2009