A man was shot dead in front of his family in Punjab’s Mandi Bahauddin district, with the victim’s wife allegedly conspiring to kill him and pretending that the incident was a robbery, police officials said.

According to a video statement by Sub-Inspector Muhammad Akram Hanjan, the Station House Officer of Pahtriyaanwali Police Station, the victim, Muhammad Afzal, allegedly “pressured his wife to undress and interact with users online to make money”.

“Meanwhile, the woman connected with another user called Usman, who was residing abroad and their relationship progressed,” the SHO added. “She wanted to marry him, but could not get a divorce from her husband.”

The SHO added in his statement that the woman began conspiring to kill Afzal, with Usman allegedly sending her Rs50,000 to buy a pistol. She also enlisted the help of her brother and a friend to plot the murder.

According to a first information report (FIR) dated October 21 — a copy of which is available with Dawn.com — Afzal was riding his motorcycle with his wife and children when he was confronted by his wife’s brother and another accomplice.

The FIR added that the suspected shooters forced the woman and children off the bike, before snatching two mobile phones and Rs1,000 from the victim and shooting him dead.

“They shot him dead in front of his wife and children before fleeing the scene,” SHO Pahtriyaanwali said in his statement. “The woman portrayed the incident as a robbery and filed a murder and robbery case at Pahtriyaanwali Police Station.”

He added that the police took the deceased’s body and transferred it to a government hospital for an autopsy, later handing it over to his heirs.

According to the SHO, Mandi Bahauddin District Police Officer (DPO) Ahmed Mohiuddin also joined in the investigation. “Upon examining the woman’s phone, we found that she had been in contact with the suspects while she was on the way to the crime scene,” the SHO said.

With this discovery, DPO Mohiuddin issued immediate orders to take Afzal’s wife into custody. SHO Akram arrested the woman, who revealed during interrogation that she had orchestrated the murder of her husband with the help of friends and her brother.

“Through the woman’s testimony, police arrested the other two suspects involved in the incident and seized the murder weapon in the Phalia police circle area,” SHO Akram added. “All three suspects are now in police custody and have confessed to committing the crime.”