Defense-C police presented the suspects in court after their pre-trial detention expired
A magistrate court on Monday sent three suspects to 14-day remand in a case involving the kidnapping and rape of two foreign women.
Defense-C police produced the three suspects before the court after their pre-trial detention expired. The investigating officer requested the court to take the suspects into custody.
The magistrate accepted the request and sent the suspects to the judicial lock-up with instructions to the police to submit their investigation report before the next hearing.
Police had already arrested seven other suspects in connection with the alleged kidnapping and rape of two foreign women. Four of them, Sajid, Sikandar, Hassan and Raza Dar (close relative of a prominent political figure), were first remanded three times for investigation and then sent to remand custody.
The other three, Rizwan, Nawaz and Nasir, were also remanded in custody on July 20.
Separately, another main suspect “boss” was arrested on July 18 and produced before the Magistrate’s Court on July 19, where he was remanded in custody for five days.
According to the prosecution, the last suspect, Waheed Tahir alias “boss”, played a key role in this offense.
Earlier, the Lahore High Court (LHC) had ruled on a petition seeking the recovery of Tahir, the prime suspect, after the police informed the court that he had already been arrested, produced before a magistrate and sent to police remand.
Justice Abhar Gul Khan was hearing the petition filed by the suspect’s mother, Mumtaz Bibi, who claimed that the police took her son into custody in connection with the foreigners’ case, but failed to produce him before a competent court within the 24-hour period prescribed by the Constitution.
The petitioner had requested the court to declare her son’s detention “unlawful” and order his release from what she describes as illegal custody.
Read: Foreign women rape case: Lahore court sends four accused to 14-day remand
In response, the police submitted a report stating that Tahir had been formally arrested in the case, produced before a judicial magistrate a day earlier and handed over to investigators for five days’ remand.
According to the prosecution, “Boss” played a central role in the commission of the offense. After recording the police report, the court declared the petition infructuous and disposed of the case.
Case history
The day before, the Lahore Magistrate’s Court had handed over the main suspect, Tahir, to the police for five days’ remand.
According to the written order available from The Express PK Press Clubthe main suspect, apprehended by the police on July 18, was presented in court on Sunday in an ambulance.
The investigating officer (IO) told the court that the suspect’s remand was necessary to recover the weapon used in the alleged crime, along with ransom, jewelry and a laptop.
The police also informed the magistrate that Tahir was named as an accused through an additional statement recorded during the investigation.
Accepting the prosecution’s request, the magistrate placed the suspect in police custody until July 24 for further investigation.
According to police, the case against the suspect was registered at Defense-C police station.
Learn more: Lahore DIG says ‘suspect linked to minister’ treated like any other criminal in foreign women case
The case
On July 2, police rescued two foreign women hours after receiving an emergency complaint, arrested four suspects and opened an investigation into allegations of kidnapping, ransom demands and sexual assault.
The victim said the women traveled to Pakistan after being invited by an acquaintance they met in Singapore in October 2025. She added that on June 29, they were kidnapped by an acquaintance and four accomplices, who demanded money for their release. The complaint further contained allegations of repeated sexual assault, armed threats, physical violence 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 abduction.
Following instructions from Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, the Lahore Police launched an operation, using Safe City surveillance to track down the suspects. The statement added that the two women were found within approximately two hours, while four suspects were arrested.
