KARACHl: Unknown criminals kidnapped a 12-year-old girl in Surjani Town, subjected her to sexual assault and torture before throwing her out of a car in the Scheme-33 area on Monday, police said.

Surjani Town SHO Ghulam Husain Pirzada said the girl had left her home in Yusuf Goth on Sunday to purchase something from a nearby shop, but she could not return. Her family informed the police who launched a search and later lodged an FIR in the morning.

Later, the SHO said, they received a phone call and photo of the girl from the Sachal police, who had found her near Madras Chowk.

The Madadgar 15 police said that they were informed about a girl who was thrown out of a moving car. They rushed to the scene and rescued her. She was taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, where doctors examined her.

Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Dawn: `The victim was disoriented and sustained multiple physical injuries. Findings are highly suggestive of sexual violence.

`The victim could not communicate and appeared to be mentally challenged,` she said, adding that for assessment and rehabilitation, she had been referred to the department of psychiatry at the National Institute of Child Health.