ISLAMABAD: The family of a Pakistani digital media executive whose brutal murder has drawn widespread attention demanded a judicial commission on Saturday, rejecting a high-level police investigation that cleared her husband and blamed a domestic worker for the killing.

Hina Javed, 45, was found tortured and murdered in the bathroom of her apartment in Rawalpindi’s Lal Kurti area on August 20. Her family accused her husband, Faisal Asghar Imam, father-in-law, Asghar Ali Fayyaz, and domestic worker, Zeeshan Arshad, of involvement in the killing. A fresh investigation ordered by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif concluded that Arshad acted alone, citing forensic evidence linking him to the crime, while finding no incriminating evidence against Imam.

The investigation identified Arshad’s DNA on 15 items, including samples from Javed’s body and objects recovered from the apartment. Imam’s DNA was also detected on parts of a bedroom door lock, but investigators said this could reflect earlier contact and did not establish his involvement in the murder.

“We reject these findings. We demand the immediate formation of a judicial commission and justice for my sister,” Fahad Javed, the victim’s brother, told a news conference in Islamabad.

“The complete fingerprint, mobile phone, laptop and forensic reports must be shared with us,” he continued. “Faisal’s DNA was found at four locations. His name must be included in the charge sheet.”

“How can someone whose DNA was found at the crime scene be declared innocent?” he asked.

He also demanded that Imam’s father be included in the investigation, questioning why police had not adequately examined his account of events surrounding the killing.

Javed’s brother accused police of treating Imam more favorably than other suspects and concentrating their investigation on Arshad from the outset.

“From the very first day, the investigation team, the police and the special committee have treated Faisal Asghar as a guest rather than a suspect,” he said.

“From day one, it seemed their aim was to put the entire blame on Zeeshan and let Faisal walk free.”

The high-level investigation team was headed by Additional Inspector General Sohail Zafar Chattha, director general of the Punjab Crime Control Department, and was formed after Javed’s family objected to the initial police inquiry.

Chattha told Arab News on Friday that forensic evidence established Arshad had killed Javed and sexually assaulted her body after her death.

He said investigators had found no incriminating evidence against Imam, who was suffering from brain cancer, and that his physical condition made it difficult for him to have committed the crime.

Chattha also cited the absence of evidence of a previous dispute between the couple, mobile phone analysis and findings that Imam was not present in the apartment when the killing occurred.

“Based on the evidence before us, I believe the husband is also a victim in this case,” he said.

Both Arshad and Imam are being held at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail on judicial remand.

Javed’s brother challenged the initial account of the killing, which he said had been presented to the family as a robbery by two intruders.

“Do thieves brutally beat someone like this? Do they break someone’s neck, leave marks on their elbows and break their jaw?” he asked.

He said the injuries and circumstances in which his sister’s body was discovered had left the family traumatized and raised questions that the investigation had failed to answer.