In a bid to obtain
magical powers and move up in the hierarchy of the occult world, a Pakistani
father had to strangle 5 of his 6 children to death, apparently believing the sacrifice would endow him with magical powers including alchemy.
According to the Mirror Newspaper, the man, 40-years-old Ali Nawaz Leghari, killed the two girls and three boys, aged between 3 and 13 years overnight in the village of Saeed Khan, some 230 kilometres north of the city of Karachi.
The police reports that Lerhari's low financial position and his desire to attain a top rank in the cult world prompted his action.
"The man's financial condition was bad but he was also learning black magic and it seems that he made the sacrifice to excel in the craft."
Amjad Sheikh, the district's police chief, confirmed the incident which occurred while Leghari was undertaking a 40-day spiritual journey, known as a 'Chilla' prescribed to him by a pir (living saint) that he hoped would teach him the art of alchemy.
Before he killed his kids, Leghari had earlier attempted to poison the family's dinner but was spotted by his wife, resulting in a bitter quarrel. The wife along with their eldest son left the house to go and stay with her parents.
With the pair out of the way, Leghari was able to successfully carry out his plan to sedate the remaining five children and then used a rope that was found at the scene to strangle them.
He strangled them one by one inside the room and later dumped them on a bed in the courtyard, before fleeing the area.
Black magic practices are rooted in mystic Sufi lore and have traditionally been the domain of pirs and aamils (sorcerers).
The practice is particularly strong in rural parts of the country including the impoverished southern Sindh province where the killings took place.