Hunt on for serial killer who raped, murdered minor in Pakistan

Pakistan police on January 12 continued its hunt for a serial killer who they say raped and murdered a seven-year-old girl in the Kasur city of Punjab province.

The girl, who was being looked after by her uncle while her parents were away on a pilgrimage, had gone missing on January 4, adding to a list of at least 11 similar cases in the last one year, the media reported.

Read more: Riots erupt in Kasur, Pakistan after 7-year-old's rape, murder

"The rapist or the murderer is a serial killer. In the previous incidents, the forensic evidence also determines it and the modus operandi of carrying out such acts also determines it," spokesperson of Punjab province — where Kasur is located — Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan told reporters.

He said the authorities now have a suspect after interrogating 96 people, and have formed a special team to nab the perpetrator as soon as possible.

Preliminary examination of the minor's body — that was recovered from a garbage dump on January 9 — had revealed rape before she was killed, and led to violent protests in Kasur during which two people died and several acts of vandalism took place.

In August 2015, at least 19 minors were recorded on video and photographed by a network of 17 people in Ganda Singh Wala, which falls in Kasur area.

In April 2016, an anti-terrorism court had sentenced two accused to life imprisonment.

In March 2016, Pakistan passed a law against sexual abuse of minors and child pornography, making it punishable by up to seven years in prison.