F.P. Report
PESHAWAR: The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Salahuddin Mehsud Wednesday said that a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) headed by District Police Officer (DPO) Mardan has been constituted for the investigation of the murder of five-year old child Asma.
Addressing a press conference here Wednesday, he said that the matter of the missing of the child was brought into the notice of Incharge Police Post at Mardan Cantonment on January 13, 2018.
On receiving the report, the local police along with the local residents initiated immediate efforts for her search and tracing, which continued for the whole night and next day body of the child was found in a sugarcane field.
The police have registered FIR of the incident with immediate effect and under the supervision of DPO Mardan a team of SP Investigation and other members of the team inspected the spot, met the relatives and residents of the area and started investigation into the incident from different angles.
The IGP further told that for investigation into the incident, DIG Mardan has constituted a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) headed by DPO Mardan while for the provision of technical assistance a senior officer of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) has also been included in the investigation team.
He said that the DIG Mardan has also constituted a 13-member committee comprising of the local elders included representatives of civil society from different walks of life.
The committee also includes members from Dispute Resolution Committee (DRC) and representatives from six different political parties. The committee will work as supporter and observer along the investigative panel to maintain transparency and pace of the investigation process.
He said that Gujjar Ghari, which is a rural area has no facility of the CCTV footage and police is utilizing all available resources to take investigation into the blind murder case forward and informing the relatives of the child and members of the committee regarding progress in investigation on daily basis.
The provincial police chief said that KP Police Headquarters and D.I.G Mardan in consecutive contact with the investigative teams and monitoring progress on investigation on daily basis and was hopeful of the giving positive results in the case soon.
He said that the medico –legal report of the child has been received, which confirms the death due to strangulation while the report has also confirmed sexual violence. He said that all evidences including DNA have been collected. He said further information being collected from the forensic report and all these matters have been brought in the notice of the family of the child and elder of the committee.
He declined to share further details of the incident with media at this stage, saying it may affect investigation into the case, so further aspects and facts of the incident will be shared with public at suitable time.
