Manhunt as 3 suspects flee Malawi after horror kidnap, torture and murder of Indian gold-smuggling ‘operative’

Three suspects wanted in connection with the brutal kidnapping, torture and murder of an Indian national have fled Malawi, sparking an international manhunt as investigators close in on those left behind.

Asif Khan, from Kurla in Mumbai, was allegedly kidnapped, tortured and killed in a case now believed to be linked to a shadowy gold-smuggling operation.

He leaves behind his devastated wife, Aamina Rafik, and their three young children.

It has since emerged that Khan was a trusted operative working within a gold-smuggling network allegedly run by Mustafa and Sadiq Kader — and that FIVE people in total were involved in his horrific abduction and murder.

But shockingly, only ONE suspect remains behind bars. Ghulam Mustafa Noor Ansari, a resident of Mudi and employee of Sky Electronics who allegedly served as a gold logistics manager handling illicit hawala accounts, is currently the sole suspect in custody.

The other four accused have vanished — with four confirmed to have fled the country entirely.
Mustafa Kader, of Mpingwe and owner of Sky Electronics, is understood to have skipped the country on 16 July via Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, with immigration records at Chileka International Airport confirming his departure.

His alleged accomplice Sadiq Kader, also of Mpingwe and co-owner of Sky Electronics, fled Malawi on the SAME day via the same route, records show.

A fourth suspect, named only as Waseem, a resident of Kanjedza — the very neighbourhood where victim Asif Khan had been living near IMJ Hospital — is said to have fled even earlier, departing on 14 July for Jogeshwari East in Mumbai, taking his wife and two children with him.

And in a jaw-dropping twist, a senior police officer has now been implicated in the scandal, allegedly pocketing a staggering MK40 million in bribes to keep the identities of those involved — and the illicit business behind the killing — hidden from justice.

Investigations into the horrifying case remain ongoing, with further explosive details expected to emerge in the coming days.