ISLAMABAD : The Supreme Court on Monday acquitted a man accused of raping and murdering a ten-year-old boy after kidnapping him.

A five-member Shariat appellate bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Mushir Alam, exonerated Khadim Hussain from all charges after 14 years. A trial court had handed three death sentences to the accused on the charges of abducting, sexually abusing and murdering the minor.

When he appealed against his conviction, a Shariat court dismissed his appeal and upheld his sentence.

His lawyer Akram Gondal stated before the SC that his client was not named as accused in the FIR.

The SC acquitted the accused due to the absence of concrete evidence to back up the charges against him. “The prosecution failed to prove the case beyond shadow of doubt,” the bench observed.