TOBA TEK SINGH: Sandalbar police, Faisalabad, on Friday arrested a man, who allegedly strangled his three-year-old nephew to death on the advice of a “spiritual healer” and then lodged a case of the child’s kidnapping with police.

According to the FIR, suspect Kashif, a resident of Chak 57-JB, had told the police on Aug 17 last that Saqlain, three-year-old son of his brother Iftikhar, who lives abroad, went out of his house and disappeared, showing apprehension the child might have been kidnapped.

However, when the child’s body was recovered from a manhole after a few days of his alleged kidnapping, and the autopsy revealed that he was strangled, police detained Kashif on suspicion. During interrogation, Kashif confessed to have killed the child on the advice of a “faith-healer”.

Informing the police about the background of his brutal act, Kashif said after the death of his only daughter, a so-called spiritual healer had advised him to give “sacrifice” of a child of his family to avert the deaths of more his children. He said acting on the advice, he strangled his minor nephew.

The police have started conducting raids to arrest the “spiritual healer”.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2023