Azerbaijani woman alleges sexual assault, robbery in Lahore

Police have registered a case after a 20-year-old Azerbaijani woman alleged that three unidentified men sexually assaulted her after she was taken to an apartment by two unidentified women following a dinner outing. According to the first information report (FIR) registered at Defence C police station, the complainant, a resident of Baku, Azerbaijan, told police that she had been in Pakistan for the past 15 to 20 days in connection with business. The woman said in her complaint that two unidentified women approached her on the night of September 25 and took her to a café for dinner. She told police that she could identify the two women if they were brought before her. According to her statement recorded in the FIR, three unidentified men were also present at the café. She alleged that the men offered to take her for an outing in a car and subsequently took her to an unidentified location where an apartment was located. The complainant alleged that the three men gave her alcohol containing an intoxicating substance, after which they allegedly sexually assaulted her one after another. She further alleged that she was confined at the apartment and later taken out and abandoned near Ghazi Interchange, close to the NetSol building and Fruit Chowk, on the afternoon of September 26. The woman also alleged that the suspects took her belongings, including an iPhone 13 and a Redmi mobile phone, before fleeing. According to the FIR, after being abandoned near the interchange, she sought help from a passer-by and used the person's mobile phone to call police emergency service 15. Police subsequently registered a case on her complaint and launched an investigation. The FIR includes relevant provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code concerning the alleged offences.