Khairpur police arrested a retired teacher who allegedly raped his students and made videos of them the day after he fled Thari Mirwah on charges of molesting dozens of children.

The scandal caused shock waves across the area after videos and photos of Sarang Shar reportedly sexually assaulting a boy appeared on social media. Angry residents and activists demanded justice for students. Meanwhile, the families of two of the alleged victims filed separate cases against the retired government teacher who ran a private education center in the town.

The police raided the area several times after the cases were filed. While Sukkur DIG Fida Hussain Mastoi confirmed that Sarang had been arrested, police told The Express Tribune that he was being held in Khairpur for security threats after being found in Kumb.

Mastoi said he asked the victims' parents to report and record FIRs against the defendants. "We will even record 100 cases when the parents come to us," he told to media adding that police have received at least two videos of the attack so far.

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Residents of Thari Mirwah claimed, however, that there were several other videos in which Sarang sexually abused children and forced them into sexual activity.

According to local media worker who filed a lawsuit against the suspect for assaulting his son, Sarang was captured with red hands, but managed to escape. In a speech to media journalists said that his son, a 4th grade student, was devastated by the attack while his wife suffered a heart attack when she received the news.

"I sent my son to class because of the closure because the schools were closed," he said. "Several other children also went to class there."

The father of another victim who brought the first case against Sarang, The Express Tribune, stated on Thursday that he had received a video clip in which his 10-year-old son was allegedly raped by the suspect. He also sent his son to the education center after schools closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Local Protest and Anger

Sadaqat Memon, a local journalist, alleged that several videos of the attack had surfaced and expressed concern that Sarang may have produced child pornography, adding that the scandal had caused uncertainty and terror among the residents of Thari Mirwah. "People are afraid he didn't act alone and are now suspicious of each other," he said.

Meanwhile, attorney Raza Hussain, who highlighted the issue on social media, claimed he subsequently received threatening phone calls and messages, including a phone threat from a Sarang family member.

Hussain said he would protest in front of the Karachi Press Club and was not satisfied with Thari Mirwah police either. "The first FIR was weak. The police only included section 377 of the Pakistani criminal code concerning "unnatural crimes". He barely gets three years in prison for that, ”he noted.

Yaseen Khaskheli, a member of the local bar, claimed that no city lawyer would defend Sarang. "We decided at a meeting that such a man could not be defended, but that all families in need of assistance would receive free legal aid," he said, adding that citizens protesting in Khairpur district were sentenced to death for Sarang.

Sarang, the father of the vice-president of Tehreek-e-Insaf Khairpur district in Pakistan, Aslam Shar, has reportedly been previously implicated in two murders, including his brother's wife, and a robbery.