Set alight: Burnt corpse found in neighbour’s closet

Police said the neighbour appeared to have murdered the woman and fled with her paramour.

Fauzia Bibi, 27, was married to Abdur Rehman, 30, a resident of 76-WB, near Thaengi. Her husband was a gardener in Canal Colony, Thaengi. They had three children between them.

Her neighbour, Shamshad Bibi, 27, lived in a servant quarter with her husband, Muhammad Hassan, and her father, Ahmed Ali, who worked with Fauzia’s husband as a gardener in Canal Colony.

Shamshad Bibi used to stitch quilts and blankets.

Police said that Fauzia Bibi had called Shamshad Bibi to her house on Wednesday. They said Rehman had not been at home at that time.

Neighbours later saw smoke coming out of the house and went over to investigate.

Shahid, a neighbour, told The Express Tribune that he entered the house to inquire about the smoke but found nobody.

He said he called more people and entered the room from where the smoke was coming out of a closet. When they opened a closet they found a body that had been set on fire. The body was identified as Shamshad Bibi’s.

Police were called and the body was taken to the Vehari DHQ hospital.

Police said they found Rehman at his job and took him into custody. He said that he was not aware of the incident and had no idea where his wife and children were.

Police said that Rehman told them that he suspected his wife of having an affair. He said that he had asked her about it.

Thaengi Station House Officer Zafar Garwah told The Express Tribune that they had registered an FIR against Fauzia Bibi. He said that Rehman was being held for further questioning.

He said that Fauzia Bibi appeared to have tried to fake her own death.

He said the autopsy report suggested that the victim had been knocked unconscious before kerosene oil was poured over her and she was set on fire. Police are looking for Fauzia Bibi and her children, he said.

Shamshad Bibi’s body has been handed over to her family.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 17^th, 2013.