Karachi: Serial child rapist willing to confess crime after victims identify him in court

A local court in Karachi on Thursday heard proceedings in a shocking case of serial child abuse, where four young girls identified the accused, Shabbir Tanoli, before the judge and recorded their statements under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Tanoli, a sherbet seller from Qayyumabad, is alleged to have abused more than 100 minors over the course of a decade. He was produced before the South Judicial Magistrate, where the victims confirmed he was the man who had assaulted them.

Police told the court that the accused has expressed his willingness to confess, and an application to record his confession has been filed. Tanoli remains in police custody on physical remand, with multiple cases registered against him under seven different provisions of law.

The accused was apprehended by residents of Qayyumabad area on September 11 and later handed over to police. At the time of his arrest, investigators recovered a mobile phone containing more than 300 explicit videos involving children.

According to investigators, Tanoli admitted during questioning that he lured minors with small sums of money, brought them to his room where he lived alone, and filmed the assaults. Police officials said many of the victims were between the ages of eight and twelve.

Read more: Karachi 'serial paedophile' slapped by victims during court appearance

Senior officers confirmed that the accused has confessed to abusing both girls and boys, and to recording hundreds of these crimes on his mobile phone over the past ten years. The case remains under investigation as court proceedings continue.

The investigation officer previously informed the court that the suspect had been named in six rape cases and had also confessed to this heinous crime to the police.

During Wednesday's proceedings, another investigation officer told the court that the suspect was also named in an additional First Information Report (FIR) for living in a rented house without a tenancy agreement. The officer added that a case was also registered against the homeowner.

The suspect, Tanlo, arrived in Karachi in 2016 and opened a grocery shop, and later, a juice cart. He started luring children for his heinous activities in 2019.