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Paedophilia case: 8 out of 9 accused arrested in Pakistan

Islamabad - Refuting the claims that more than 280 children had been targeted by the alleged paedophile ring, the RPO claimed that so far only eight cases had been registered against 15 accused men.

Eight of the nine accused nominated in the Ganda Singhwala (Shaikhupura) paedophilia case have been arrested, Punjab law minister Rana Sanaullah told newsmen in Lahore. The ninth man, he said, had secured pre-arrest bail from court.
The minister said Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has taken serious notice of the reports that several hundred children had been victims and that the offence had been going on for some years.
Meanwhile, Shaikhupura Regional Police Officer (RPO) Shehzad Sultan has said that investigations into the case showed that far fewer victims had been filmed than was being claimed in media reports, adding that the victims were 'teenagers' and not 'children'.
Sultan said that calling the pornography scandal victims 'children' was incorrect.
The RPO, flanked by the District Police Officer (DPO) of Kasur, claimed that all videos that the police had reviewed showed victims being sexually abused.
Refuting the claims that more than 280 children had been targeted by the alleged paedophile ring, the RPO claimed that so far only eight cases had been registered against 15 accused men.
He added that after receiving complaints about a paedophile ring active in the area, police officials from Ganda Singh police station visited the village and made announcements in mosques urging people to come forward and lodge their complaints.
Following investigations, the RPO said that they discovered that of the 15 accused, nine were directly involved.
Eight of these men directly involved had been apprehended by police.
Investigations revealed around 400 videos were made of 280 victims of abuse by the gang of over 25 criminals. The case came to light after some private TV channels carried out probe in the wake of public protest demonstrations in Kasur, about 30km from Lahore.
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