Lahore court grants five-day physical remand of four in foreign women assault case

A judicial magistrate in Lahore on Friday granted police a five-day physical remand of four suspects arrested in connection with a case involving the alleged rape and abduction of foreign women. Police on Thursday rescued two foreign women within hours of receiving an emergency complaint, arrested four suspects, and launched an investigation into allegations of kidnapping, ransom demands, and sexual assault. A first information report (FIR) was registered at the Defence C Police Station under Sections 365A (kidnapping) and 375A (rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) on one of the victims' complaints. She said that the women travelled to Pakistan after being invited by an acquaintance they had met in Singapore in October 2025 The suspects were produced before Judicial Magistrate Azhar Mahmood at the Cantonment Courts under tight security. During the hearing, the court confirmed the attendance of all four suspects and directed them to remove their face masks inside the courtroom. The prosecution sought a 14-day physical remand, arguing that further custody was required to investigate the allegations. Prosecutors told the court that the alleged victims are foreign nationals and that one of the accused, Ali Dar, has been nominated in the case. Read: 4 arrested for sexual assault of foreign women After hearing arguments, the court partly accepted the prosecution's request and granted the police a five-day physical remand of the suspects. The accused produced before the court were identified as Raza Dar, Hassan Raza, Sajid Ali, and Sikandar Khan. Following the hearing, police took the suspects back into custody to continue the investigation. The allegations against the suspects have yet to be tested in court. The case The victim said that the women travelled to Pakistan after being invited by an acquaintance they had met in Singapore in October 2025. She added that on June 29, they were abducted by the acquaintance and four accomplices, who demanded money for their release. The complaint further contained allegations of repeated sexual assault, threats with weapons, physical abuse and extortion. A statement from the Lahore police said an emergency call was received through the Punjab Emergency Helpline after the father of one of the women, who was in the Netherlands, reported the alleged kidnapping. Read more: Lahore police arrests 4 suspects for kidnapping, sexual assault of two foreign women Following directions from Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, the Lahore police launched an operation, using Safe City surveillance to trace the suspects. The statement added that the two women were recovered within approximately two hours, while four suspects were arrested. Police said raids were continuing to apprehend the remaining suspects. Investigators said the victims had undergone medical examinations and that further legal proceedings would be conducted in light of forensic and other evidence collected during the investigation. Reports circulating on social media alleged that one of the suspects was related to an influential political figure. However, the police did not comment on the claim and no such relationship was mentioned in the FIR or police statement.

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