By Michelle Jones. Originally published at ValueWalk.
The recent string of knife attacks in Karachi has police there scrambling to find the guilty man before he hurts another girl. Meanwhile, young women are on edge in Pakistan’s most populous city, and police are advising them to be very careful while on the city’s streets. One female student at University of Karachi told Geo TV that police have advised them not to leave home after twilight.
At this point, media reports indicate that at least six young women in the Gulistan-e-Johar neighborhood of Karachi have been attacked in the same manner by a man fitting the same description within the last week. The attacks have occurred near the Jauhar Chowrangi and Rabia City areas of Gulistan-e-Johar. Five of the victims suffered minor knife wounds and received basic first aid treatment at area hospitals. One of the women needed stitches for her injuries.
The women come from different family backgrounds and are of varying education levels and ages, as one of the victims was 28 years old, while another was in the seventh grade. The most recent attack was early Saturday morning when a young woman who was getting out of a rickshaw in the Mosamiat area was attacked and stabbed. She immediately got back into the same rickshaw and was taken to the hospital for treatment.
Police have launched a manhunt for the assailant in the knife attacks in Karachi and are trying to piece together evidence that will point to the man’s identity and a motive for the attacks. Police have even offered a reward of Rs 500,000 for information which leads to the arrest of the guilty man.
So far, investigators believe that the man responsible for the knife attacks in Karachi is mentally ill, and they describe him as thin and between the ages of 20 and 29. The man’s victims estimate his height at between 5’7″ and 5’9″ tall. At the time of most of the attacks, he has been riding a red motorcycle. Investigators say the weapon used by the man in the knife attacks seems to be some kind of scalpel commonly used by doctors for surgery.
One of the women said her assailant told her, “Now something is going to happen to you,” while the other women said her attacker didn’t say anything to her. They told police that the man attacked them and then just fled the scene without a word. The victims also said that the man was wearing a black helmet during the attacks, so they couldn’t see his face.
On Saturday, police released photos of the suspect they are seeking for questioning in the knife attacks in Karachi. Then on Monday, they detained six suspects in the investigation of the attacks on women in the Gulistan-e-Johar neighborhood. Investigators told Dawn that they detained the six suspects for interrogation about clues into the identity and motive of the assailant.
They say the evidence suggests that just one man is responsible for the attacks, and they do not believe that a gang or other group is behind them. Police stepped up patrols in the area after the attack on Saturday and say that they have received no other reports of knife attacks in Karachi since then.
The post Police Launch Manhunt For Suspect In Knife Attacks In Karachi, Pakistan appeared first on ValueWalk.
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