Islamabad, Oct 19 : In a bone-chilling murder case that has triggered panic and fear in the financial hub of Pakistan, dead bodies of four females were found from an apartment in Karachi's Lea Market area on Saturday.

As per the reports, all bodies were found on the 7th floor of Zainab Arcade apartments, near Lea Market in Karachi's Lyari area.

"Throats of all four victims have been slit with a sharp-edged weapon. There are also marks of torture on their bodies," the local police revealed.

The killed females have been identified as Aleena (13), Madeeha (18), Ayesha (19), and Shehnaz (51). The dead bodies of all of the four females were found in different rooms of the apartment. Police authorities have not found any weapon from the crime scene and say that the killers fled after slaying all victims with the same weapon.

Muhammad Farooq, the head of the family, told the police that he, along with his two sons, were not at home when the incident took place.

"The deceased include my wife, grand-daughter and daughter in law. I was away with my two sons when the incident took place," said Farooq.

"We don't have suspicion on anyone as we don't hold any enmity," he added.

An official investigation has been initiated in the matter with the dead bodies being shifted to Civil Hospital for autopsy. Police authorities are also acquiring the CCTV footage from the cameras installed in the Bantva gali to find the killer.

Farooq and his two sons have also been taken into custody for investigation as police suspect involvement of a relative in the murders.

The incident has sent shockwaves across the Pakistani city because of its brutal and inhumane nature. The case is yet to be ascertained but some believe that it may be a case of honour killing by the male members of the family.

The incident has also brought back memories of a previous incident where a husband strangled his wife to death in front of his father and mother while another person was also making a video of the whole incident that later went viral on social media.

"There are many such cases where females are being killed in the name of honour - for property disputes, on suspicion of adultery, for not being able to give birth to a son, for not giving birth at all or for being forced into labour and prostitution by own families," said Rights Activist Tahira Abdullah.

"Unfortunately, despite a long list of such cases, only a handful of culprits are caught and punished. In most cases, the killers are never held following hogwash investigations. It is so tragic," she added.

/IANS