Father, son arrested over beheading for 'honour' in Faisalabad

TOBA TEK SINGH: Police have arrested a man and his son in connection with the killing of a man whose headless body was found in Faisalabad district, officials said.

According to police, a joint team of the Factory Area Police in Faisalabad and Sahianwala Police in Chak Jhumra traced the case after a headless body of an unidentified person was recovered on April 10 from Chak 127 JB, within the limits of Sahianwala Police Station. The discovery had caused alarm in the area.

Police said a kidnapping case under Section 365 of the Pakistan Penal Code had also been registered by Factory Area Police over the disappearance of Javed Iqbal. During the investigation, officers used CCTV footage, geofencing and human intelligence to identify and track two suspects.

After their arrest, the suspects were identified as Muhammad Irshad and his son Muhammad Arsalan. Police said the two confessed during interrogation to killing Javed Iqbal.

The suspects also told investigators that they had buried the victim’s head in bushes in the Sahianwala area. Police later recovered the remains on the suspects’ identification.

Police account of motive

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, DSP Rana Nadeem Iqbal said the father and son told investigators that the victim had formed a relationship with a girl from their family. According to the officer, they said Javed Iqbal had been pressuring the family for marriage and had threatened to release some pictures.

The DSP said that on April 4, after receiving the alleged threats, the suspects called Javed Iqbal to the Bahlolpur area of Sahianwala on the pretext of going on a fishing trip. Police said they killed him there, disposed of the body and buried the head separately in an attempt to hide the crime.

Other incidents reported

In a separate incident, a young man drowned in the Jhang branch canal near the Dhamma canal rest house on Jhang Road in Gojra on Wednesday. Rescue 1122 officials said Abu Bakr, 20, of Chak 372 JB Bujjianwali, had been bathing in the canal with friends when he entered a deep-water section and drowned. Rescuers recovered his body five kilometres from the spot after what officials described as hectic efforts.

Also on Wednesday, two unidentified motorcyclists fled after dumping a man’s body in the Baraghar police area of Nankana Sahib, police said. The deceased was identified as Adnan Ahmed, a resident of Jalal Nao Mor Khanda.

According to an FIR lodged by his brother, Suleman, Adnan had received a phone call on Tuesday night and left home, but did not return. The complainant alleged that suspects Shoban, Farid and Nasim, along with four unidentified accomplices, killed Adnan for unknown reasons. He further alleged that Shoban and Farid later dumped the body near Ghulam Nabi Park before escaping. Police said raids were under way to arrest the nominated and unidentified suspects.

In another case, police said an elderly unmarried woman was killed in Chak 135 JB in Chak Jhumra tehsil of Faisalabad on Tuesday night. The victim, Azra Bibi, 65, lived alone. Police said an unidentified attacker entered her house and struck her on the head with a hard object, killing her at the scene. Her body was shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Chak Jhumra for a post-mortem examination, while police said the investigation was continuing.