PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police said on Wednesday they have arrestedthe prime suspect behind what they described sexual assault and murder offour-year-old Asma in Mardan.
Mardan Regional Police Officer Dr Mian Saeed said the suspected killer,identified as 15-year-old Muhammad Nabi, had confessed to the crime.
Four-year-old Asma went missing on January 13 from Jandarpar Gujjar Garhiarea of Mardan and her body was found from sugarcane fields in the samearea on January 17.
While addressing a press conference alongside IG KP police SalahuddinMehsud, the police officer said an accomplice of the suspect had also beentaken into custody.
He said the suspect, who worked at a local restaurant, had come to attend amarriage ceremony, where he lured the minor into nearby fields.
Nabi, who is a cousin of the victim girl, strangulated her to death whiletrying to stop her from screaming.
The KP police chief categorically stated that this was not a case of rape,but a sexual assault and murder.
He said that his force tackled the case successfully within 25 days despitenumerous hardships.
Defending the performance of the under-fire KP police, he said the provincehad witnessed a remarkable decline in crimes, including murders andkidnapping for ransom, in the last three years.
Acts of terrorism had also decreased by almost 73 per cent, he claimed.