The uncle of an 18-year-old
Pakistani girl killed her at the family home near Reggio Emilia
at the end of April because she had refused an arranged marriage
to an older man in Pakistan, her 16-year-old brother confirmed
in testimony to a preliminary investigations judge Friday.
Danish Hasnain, 43, strangled Saman Abbas at Novellara, the boy
reiterated.
Saman's mother lured her home from the shelter she had taken
refuge in with a deceptive text message that said the family
would respect her wishes, the Gazzetta di Reggio newspaper said
Wednesday.
According to the Emilian paper, Saman's mother sent her a
text saying "please get in touch, come home. We are dying. Come
back, we'll do as you say".
The message was reportedly sent to Abbas in the youth home she
had fled to after reporting her parents for trying to force her
into the marriage with the older man she did not know in
Pakistan.
Saman went home on April 22, a week before she disappeared from
Novellara near Reggio Emilia and is believed to have been
strangled by her uncle Hasnain, before the family allegedly
disposed of her body, which has yet to be found.
Abbas's mother is under investigation along with her father
Shabbar, who are both fugitives and believed to be somewhere in
Pakistan.
Also under investigation in the case are Hasnain, believed to
have been the actual murderer, and her cousins Nomanulhaq
(believed to be in hiding somewhere in Europe along with the
uncle) and Ikram Ijaz, now in custody in Reggio and the only
member of the family to have been arrested, in France on May 28
while trying to reach Spain.
The search for Abbas's body goes on in and around Novellara.
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