LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Tuesday was informed that the suspected killer in Zainab murder case has been formally nominated in the rape and murder cases of seven other children in Kasur as well.
The investigation officer (IO) probing the cases told the ATC judge that the suspect had kidnapped, raped and killed a total of eight girls.
Police produced suspect Imran Ali before the court after an initial 14-day remand expired. The IO sought an additional five-day remand of the suspect, saying that the police wished to further probe him in connection with the cases. The court extended the physical remand of the suspected killer for three days.
Subsequently, the court handed over his custody to the police and directed the investigating officer to present him on next hearing along with a progress report.
Earlier, Imran Ali, during the court proceedings of the anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore, Imran admitted to the rape and murder of Zainab.
The suspect is a serial killer based in Kasur, who is accused of raping and murdering 6-7 girls over the course of two years.
After social media and civil society pressure, the suspected killer in Zainab murder case was apprehended with the Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif formally announcing the arrest.
“Zainab’s suspected murderer and rapist is a 24-year-old man named Imran Ali,” CM Shehbaz announced.
According to details, DNA samples of Imran Ali were sent to Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) in Lahore along with 1,050 other samples that were taken over the course of the investigations. Report from PFSA confirmed that Imran’s DNA sample matched with the traces that were collected from Zainab’s body.
Furthermore, according to police, the suspect confessed to carrying out the heinous crime, and a polygraph test was also conducted which came positive, following which the criminal has been shifted to an undisclosed location.
The killer has reportedly told police that “djinn” is responsible for the rapes and murder of little girls, essentially saying that he was possessed by an entity.
It was revealed that Imran was initially booked on suspicion of involvement in the rape and murder of Zainab but was later released after his DNA samples were collected by the police. It was only after PFSA confirmed the matching of the DNA samples that he was rearrested on January 20 from Pakpattan.
Additionally, according to reports, Imran had shaved his beard after the incident which helped him evade arrest till now as the CCTV footage showed a man sporting a beard.