A man was arrested for allegedly wounding his aunt and murdering her husband in an apparent "honour killing" in the Manghopir area of Karachi, police told DawnNews on Wednesday.

According to Station House Officer (SHO) Manghpoir Haji Sanaullah, the couple — Rozi Khan and Zainab — had entered a free will marriage in Balochistan last year and moved to Karachi where they had rented a house in Wandi Sharif Goth, Manghopir. Several members of Balochistan's Marri tribe also live in the area.

Though several of their relatives opposed the marriage, Zainab's mother and one of her brothers had consented to it, police said.

According to police, the chief suspect had arrived at the couple's house on Tuesday night with at least five other accomplices. He opened fire on Rozi, who died from a shot to the head.

The suspect then tried to shoot at Zainab, but his gun malfunctioned, leading him to attack her with sticks and a knife, leaving her injured. She is currently being treated at the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

The suspect, who sustained wounds after Zainab put up resistance, later went to a private hospital in Gulshan-i-Maymar with a friend and claimed his injuries were a result of a robbery incident. However, acting on a tip, the police arrested him while he was undergoing treatment.

Six people, including Zainab's nephew, have been nominated in the first information report (FIR) lodged at the Manghopir police station with Rozi's brother, Mangal Khan, as the complainant.

The primary suspect's friend who accompanied him to the hospital is also being treated as a suspect; however, he has not been nominated in the FIR.