No headway in Karachi missing schoolgirls' case

KARACHI: An entire day has passed since three schoolgirls went missing in Saudabad area of the port city on Friday and police officials have not been able to get a clue regarding their whereabouts.

However, they have arrested five young boys in connection with the case including a student of seventh grade, ARY News reported on Saturday.

Apparently, the boys knew the missing girls and did exchange SMS (short message service) with them on the basis occasionally, which they have been taken into custody and as the last reports were being interrogated.

The boys have been constantly denying their involvement in the case.

One of the boys, Muhammad Ali, revealed that one girl told him in a text message that she was going flee from home since her family used to torture her physically.

The missing girls, from 14-15 years of age, went missing on Friday instead of going to school.

Their parents have been insisting that they dropped them at the doorway of the school but the school administration said they never entered the school premises.

According to the TCF School Malir officials, the girls never reached the school since their attendance was not marked.

Earlier on Friday, family members of the missing girls and the residents of Saudabad complained that the police were not cooperating with them in the case and they later registered an FIR (first information report) only when they had surrounded their police station.

Inspector General Sindh Police A.D. Khawaja ordered an investigation into the case of the ninth grade students, after taking notice of the news, which made headlines yesterday.