Motorway rape: Police did not arrest my son, he turned himself in, claims suspect's father

(Karachi) The father of prime suspect in Motorway rape case, Akbar Ali, has claimed that the police did not arrest his son, rather he turned himself in, media reported on Wednesday.

Abid Malhi, the key accused involved in sexually assaulting a woman on Lahore-Sialkot section of the Motorway, was nabbed on October 13 by Punjab Police. The police stated that they apprehended the suspect when he came to meet his wife in Faisalabad.

As per details, Akbar told media that his son Abid called him a few days ago and expressed the desire to turn himself in as the police were harassing the family members, including women.

He stated that his son came to his place and had a brief discussion on the matter. The suspect's father said that Abid assured him he will hand himself to the police and everything will be fine. Later, he maintained Abid turned himself in police custody.

Meanwhile, Punjab IGP Inam Ghani has denied the claims. He stated that the police worked tirelessly to nab the accused.

The background

On October 13, Abid Malhi was arrested from Faisalabad. Another suspect, Shafqat, was arrested earlier and is in jail on judicial remand after confessing to committing the crime.

As part of the operation, Malhi's wife was given a SIM which she used to call him.

The accused told his wife in one of his calls that he would meet her in Faisalabad. When the motorway rape suspect arrived in the city to meet her, he was arrested by police officials deputed on the spot in plain clothes.

During interrogation, Abid Malhi transpired that he and Shafqat robbed two to three truck drivers near Karol village on the Motorway, before they sexually assaulted the victim.

He told investigators that the car's flashing indicators caught his attention and upon seeing a woman inside, he asked her to come out of the vehicle. He added when the woman refused to come out of the car, he broke the vehicle's window and dragged her outside.

He maintained that after robbing the woman of her valuables, they told her to accompany them into the forested area but the woman refused to do so. Malhi disclosed that they took her children off the motorway and the woman followed to protect them.

He said when they went down, he and Shafqat took the victim into the bushes and gang-raped her. The suspect revealed that he and his accomplice fled when the Dolphin Police force arrived and fired shots into the air.