Police said on Tuesday they had arrested a man for allegedly beheading his eight-year old niece with a hatchet during an exorcism. The man's wife delivered a stillborn boy two weeks ago and an "exorcist-cum-magician" told him that the victim's mother had performed black magic on them, police said. The exorcist said that to ward off the effects of the evil spell he had to kill his niece, said Mukhtar Tikka, the district police officer of Vehari.
"We have arrested Muhammad Asghar for murdering his eight-year-old niece Ramsha," Tikka told Daily Times. Asghar murdered his niece on Sunday and dumped her body in a canal, police said. He later told the family that she had been kidnapped and joined the search efforts, but the girl's mother and his wife knew about the crime and told investigators. The girl's body was found on Monday, Tikka said. "The accused has confessed his crime and police have seized the hatchet," he added. |