Court Indicts Eight in Lahore Gang Rape Case Involving Foreign Nationals
Indictment in Lahore Gang Rape Case
File image of Pakistan deputy PM & Foreign minister Isahq Dar(Photo: @ForeignOfficePk/X)
Lahore, Nov 11: A court in Pakistan has charged eight individuals, including the grandson of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, in connection with the gang rape of two foreign women, as confirmed by an official on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Lahore's Additional District & Sessions Judge, Rafaqat Ali Gondal, formally charged the suspects, all of whom pleaded not guilty. The judge has instructed the prosecution to present its witnesses on December 9, marking the commencement of the trial.
All accused are currently in judicial custody and were brought before the court for the indictment process.
Interestingly, Punjab police had previously cleared Ishaq Dar's grandson, Raza Dar, and four others of any wrongdoing in this case.
Instead of charging them, the police implicated three lower-paid employees of Raza Dar in the alleged rape, according to an earlier police report submitted to the court.
The victims, Stephanie Adnana Mau-Arun from the Netherlands and Astrid Robinson Baracho from Venezuela, were reportedly kidnapped and assaulted by Raza Dar and his associates upon their arrival in Lahore for a business trip in June.
Medical examinations confirmed the assault, and both women returned to their home countries after providing their statements.
According to the police report, the women had met Raza Dar in Singapore in 2025 and invited him to invest in their cryptocurrency business.
After initially profiting from the investment, Raza Dar reportedly invested over $500,000. However, when the women failed to provide any returns, he invited them to Pakistan under the pretense of meeting another investor, where they stayed in a hotel in Islamabad and later traveled to Murree.
Subsequently, they were taken to a residence in Lahore's Defence Housing Authority, where they were allegedly held captive and coerced into repaying the investment.
Police reported that the women were forced to transfer $19,500, while armed men threatened them with weapons, warning of dire consequences if they did not comply.
Fortunately, the women managed to escape during their transport to Lahore airport when their vehicle was involved in an accident.