English 
Chinese 
Dutch 
Arabic 
Spanish 
Portuguese 
Russian 
French 
Italian 
German 
Japanese The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ordered the release of the final three men on death row in the 2014 murder case of a Christian couple, Shahzad Masih and his pregnant wife, Shama Bibi.
With this decision, along with the dismissal of a state appeal against the acquittal of 102 other suspects, no one remains convicted or in prison for the attack.
Background of the Attack
On November 4, 2014, in a village near Kot Radha Kishan, a violent mob attacked Shahzad and Shama after they were accused of desecrating pages of the Quran. The mob severely beat the couple before throwing them into a hot brick kiln, where they both died. Following international outcry, police arrested hundreds of local villagers and charged many with murder and rioting.
During the past decade, the legal proceedings surrounding the case moved sequentially through three levels of Pakistan’s judicial system. In November 2016, an Anti-Terrorism Court handed down the initial judgments, sentencing five men to death, issuing short prison terms to nine others, and acquitting 92 individuals due to a lack of concrete evidence.
The case then progressed to appellate review, where the Lahore High Court subsequently overturned the convictions of two death-row inmates while upholding the lower court’s decision to clear the remaining suspects.
Finally, the Supreme Court delivered the ultimate verdict. A three-member bench reviewed the remaining appeals, overturned the death sentences of the final three convicts, Irfan, Mehdi, and Riaz, and officially rejected the Punjab government’s request to retry the other 102 suspects, effectively ending all convictions in the case.
The Supreme Court based its decision to free the remaining suspects on standard legal requirements under Pakistani criminal law, which mandate that prosecutors provide clear evidence proving specific actions by individual defendants.
‘Problematic’ Evidence
Upon reviewing the case, the court identified several key defects in the prosecution’s evidence. First, statements given by primary witnesses to the police immediately following the attack conflicted significantly with their later court testimonies.
Second, while the prosecution successfully established the presence of a large and violent mob, witnesses were unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the exact role played by each accused individual.
Finally, widespread fear and direct threats of violence within the local community left key witnesses intimidated, resulting in hesitant or inconsistent testimonies that failed to meet the legal standard for conviction.
The Fight Continues
Christian groups and human rights organizations in Pakistan have strongly criticized the outcome. Leaders from the churches stated that the verdict highlights deep flaws in how mob violence cases are investigated and prosecuted.
Rights advocates continue to urge the government to improve witness protection, reform police procedures, and create laws that hold violent mobs accountable.
To read more news stories, visit the ICC Newsroom. For interviews, please email us. To support ICC’s work around the world, please give to our Where Most Needed Fund.
The post Pakistan Supreme Court Acquits All Suspects in 2014 Brick Kiln Murder Case first appeared on International Christian Concern.