The prime suspect of the motorway sexual assault, Abid Malhi has been arrested in Faisalabad, police officials confirmed on Monday.
DIG Shahzada Sultan told media that Abid had been taken into custody after a hiatus of over one month from the incident that shook collective conscience of the nation.
Entire police force of the province had been searching for him since he went into hiding and teams were busy in reconnaissance to find out his hiding place, source privy to the development told The Express Tribune.
They said police also conducted several raids at residences of his relatives and close friends who had been in frequent contact with Abid.
Abid had escaped arrest on multiple occasions during police teams’ raids in Kasur, Sheikhhupura, Nankana Sahib and other areas of the province, sources further revealed.
His arrest was made possible after police tapped phone calls of Abid’s relatives which led to the whereabouts of the accused, they said, adding that Abid had been seeking logistics and financial aid from his relatives.
Police located Abid’s hide out in Faisalabad by tracing his location through phone number, they added.
Without disclosing the date of his arrest, DIG Sultan said Abid was being interrogated for some time and his identity was also confirmed through DNA profiling.
The horrific gang rape of a woman in front of her children on one of the main arteries of the country occurred last month which shocked the entire nation and triggered countrywide outrage.
The woman was travelling with her children when their car stalled in Gujjarpura as it ran out of fuel.
She called one of her relatives and sent him her location on the motorway. When the relative reached the location, he saw the woman panic-stricken and blood stains on her clothes. The windowpanes of her vehicle were also broken.
The woman told the police that she was waiting for her relative to pick her up and her children when two armed men attacked her. One of them struck the car with clubs and the other held them hostage at gunpoint.
The attackers then took her and the children to a nearby forested area where they gang-raped the woman.
Later, they robbed her of valuables which included Rs100,000 cash, two gold jewellery pieces, a bracelet, car registration card and three ATM cards and left her stranded.
Upon receiving the report of the incident, a heavy contingent of police and forensics rushed to the scene.
