Police Challan Clears Five Suspects of Rape in Foreign Women

Police Challan Clears Five Suspects of Rape in Foreign Women's Case LAHORE: An incomplete police investigation report submitted to a trial court in connection with the alleged gang rape of two foreign women in Lahore has cleared five suspects, including a man reportedly linked to a senior government minister, of sexual assault charges, while implicating them in other offences, including illegal confinement and extortion. The report charged three other suspects, described by the defence as low-paid employees of one of the key accused, with sexually assaulting the women. Defence C police registered the case in July under Sections 365-A (kidnapping or abducting for extortion), 375-A (rape), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 368 (wrongfully concealing or confining a kidnapped or abducted person) and 337-L(II) (punishment for other hurt) of the Pakistan Penal Code. According to the investigation report, the complainants told police they had met one of the three prime suspects in Singapore in 2025 and invited him to invest in their cryptocurrency business. After receiving returns on his initial investment, the suspect allegedly invested a further $500,000. However, the women reportedly neither paid him profits nor returned the investment. In June this year, the suspect invited the women to Pakistan on the pretext of arranging a meeting with another investor. They stayed at a hotel in Islamabad before travelling to Murree and other areas. The report alleged that the suspect later told an associate that the women owed him money. The associate then involved another prime suspect, identified as 'boss'. On June 29, the women were taken to a house in Defence Phase VII, Lahore, where they were allegedly held against their will and pressured to pay the amount. Police said the women were forced to transfer around $19,500, which was converted into rupees through a Lahore-based account. Two suspects reportedly received Rs1.1 million each. According to the report, the complainants alleged that armed men guarded them at the house and threatened them with a knife, a gun and a broken piece of mirror. They were also warned that they would be killed and their body parts sold if they failed to meet the demands. The investigation found evidence indicating that three suspects had sexually assaulted the women. However, police said they found no evidence of rape against the remaining five suspects, including the relative of the political figure and the man identified as 'boss'. The report stated that the women escaped on July 1 when the car taking them to the airport met with an accident near Bhatta Chowk. They raised an alarm, prompting the relative of the senior political figure to flee, while police took the women into their protection. Police also claimed to have recovered Rs4.3 million allegedly extorted from the women, along with a mobile phone and a vehicle purportedly used in the crime. Pistols and a rifle were also recovered, leading to separate cases under the Arms Ordinance, the report said. Another suspect was accused of renting out the house to the group without informing the authorities, while a further suspect was allegedly involved in destroying evidence. Police said these allegations led to the addition of Sections 368 and 201 to the case. The complainants underwent medical examinations, and their statements were recorded before a magistrate under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The incomplete report said DNA, fingerprint and polygraph tests had also been conducted and call data records obtained. However, reports from the Punjab Forensic Science Agency were still awaited. Police said they had submitted an incomplete challan to avoid delays, maintaining that sufficient evidence had already been collected against the suspects. They asked the court to summon the accused through notices. Additional District and Sessions Judge Rafaqat Ali Gondal has distributed copies of the police report among the suspects and fixed November 11 for the next hearing. Defence alleges police favouritism Advocate Salman Shahid, counsel for two of the suspects charged with sexual assault, accused police of favouring the key suspects during the investigation. He claimed his clients were low-paid employees of one of the main accused and had been made scapegoats. One of them, he said, was a member of the janitorial staff at the property where the alleged incident took place. In July, Lahore Deputy Inspector General of Police (Operations) Faisal Kamran had said police had been directed to treat a suspect reportedly linked to a senior government minister like 'any other criminal'. At a press conference, Kamran had outlined the events leading to the recovery of the women and the subsequent arrests, saying the investigation had indicated that a 'criminal gang' might have been involved. He had also pledged that police would ensure no legal loophole was left that could be exploited in favour of the suspect. The two women left Pakistan on July 3.