Chakwal: Police have solved the gruesome murder of 16-year-old madrassa student Muzammil Yaqoob from Kothah Abdal village, revealing that the crime was committed by his stepfather, Muhammad Mubashir, in what investigators describe as a premeditated and exceptionally brutal act.

According to police officials, the 36-year-old suspect, a resident of Sakriyala village, poisoned the teenager by mixing rat poison into sweets before taking him to a deserted area near Mohra Thaneel and Sadwal. Once the boy became semi-conscious, the suspect allegedly slit his throat and repeatedly stabbed him, later dumping the body in a linseed field and discarding the murder weapon in a nearby wheat field.

Investigators said the murder stemmed from deep-seated domestic disputes, jealousy, and a property conflict. Muzammil’s mother had remarried Muhammad Mubashir four to five years ago after separating from her first husband, Muhammad Yaqoob. Muzammil and his younger brother were from her first marriage; the younger brother passed away last year due to kidney disease.

Police stated that the suspect frequently objected to his wife’s attention toward Muzammil and was pressuring her to transfer five to six kanals of inherited land into his name. However, the woman and her family wanted the property to be transferred to Muzammil instead, which further aggravated the suspect.

Muzammil was a Hafiz-e-Quran student at a madrassa in Chak Baqar Shah and had memorised 20 paras of the Holy Quran. The madrassa administration described him as obedient, intelligent, and well-mannered.

He usually returned home every two weeks, but due to his grandmother’s death, he stayed longer at home this time — a circumstance police say the suspect exploited to execute his plan.

Police revealed that on the evening of February 8, the suspect took Muzammil on a motorcycle ride after feeding him poisoned sweets purchased earlier from a bakery on Talagang Road. When the boy became semi-conscious, the suspect stopped the motorcycle, laid him on the ground, and attacked him.
Before being killed, the child reportedly asked his stepfather,
“Uncle, what have I done wrong?”

After the murder, the suspect allegedly attempted to mislead investigators by actively participating in the search for Muzammil and claiming he would spend millions of rupees to find him.

A missing persons report was registered at Saddar Police Station on February 10. Six days later, Muzammil’s mutilated body was recovered from a field between Mohra Thaneel, Dhok Daraz, and Sadwal. Parts of the body had been mauled by wild animals.

Despite demanding a DNA test during the post-mortem to divert suspicion, police detained the suspect on February 15. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime, and the murder weapon was recovered on his identification.

The prime suspect in the murder of 16-year-old Muzammil Yaqoob, Muhammad Mubashir, was killed in an alleged police encounter on Tuesday. Police sources said the encounter occurred during a recovery operation when the suspect’s accomplices opened fire on a police team, prompting retaliatory action.