A 28-year-old Pakistani Christian was murdered by his in-laws after his wife proclaimed Christ as Lord and turned away from Islam.

Aleem Masih was shot three times by the father and brothers of his wife Nadia.  The couple was attempting to flee from Lahore, Pakistan to avoid the very situation in which they were killed.

“The couple fled to Narang Mandi, some 60 kilometers [37 miles] away from Lahore, as Nadia’s Muslim family launched a manhunt for them to avenge the shame their daughter had brought upon them by recanting Islam and marrying a Christian,” Aneeqa Maria, an attorney from the human rights organization The Voice Society, told Morning Star News.

The girl’s family found the couple in a rickshaw and dragged them to a farm where they were severely beaten and shot.  Nadia survived her wounds and was taken to a hospital where she continues to recover.

“The attackers returned to their village and publicly proclaimed that they had avenged their humiliation and restored the pride of the Muslims by killing the couple in cold blood,” Maria explained. “Nadia’s brother, Azhar, then presented himself before the police and confessed to having killed his sister and her Christian husband.”

Muslims in the region are threatening officials to not investigate the case and not to file charges against the girl’s family for their actions.