PAKISTAN: A Lahore court has extended the physical remand of four suspects by four days in a case involving the alleged kidnapping, extortion and sexual assault of two foreign women, allowing police to continue their investigation.
The suspects, including the prime accused Ahmad Raza Dar, were produced before the court on Monday.
What progress has investigators made?
The investigating officer informed the court that police had recovered the mobile phones and the vehicle allegedly used in the incident.
The officer added that the recovery of money linked to the case was still pending.
Who appeared before the court?
Three suspects—Sikandar Aziz Khan, Hassan Raza Sajid Ali and another accused—were represented by defence counsel Salman Shahid during the proceedings.
No legal representative appeared on behalf of the prime suspect, Ahmad Raza Dar.
After hearing the arguments, the court approved a four-day extension of the suspects’ physical remand.
What is the case about?
The case is based on a First Information Report (FIR) registered at Lahore’s Defence C Police Station against five suspects over the alleged kidnapping, extortion and sexual assault of two foreign nationals—a Venezuelan woman and a Dutch woman.
According to police, the women arrived in Lahore on June 29 and were allegedly abducted shortly afterwards.
How did police trace the suspects?
Police said investigators tracked the vehicle allegedly used in the incident through Safe City surveillance cameras and monitored its movement along the motorway to Sargodha.
Raids were also carried out in Shahdara and Defence as part of the investigation.
Authorities said the first ransom call was received on July 1 from a man identified as Carlos, who informed police that Spanish authorities had also been notified. The Safe City Authority also received an emergency call the same day.
Police arrested four suspects on July 2 after tracing phone records, vehicle details and location data.
Tags: Pakistan, Lahore, Crime, Foreign Women, Kidnapping, Sexual Assault, Lahore Court, Punjab Police, Safe City, Investigation, Venezuelan National, Dutch National, Physical Remand, Law and Order, Pakistan News