70-year-old man allegedly kills 12-year-old girl to sell child's body parts on black market

A 70-year-old man in Afghanistan allegedly killed a 12-year-old girl before chopping her body into pieces so that he could sell them on the black market.

The accused's two daughters reportedly helped him commit the crime that took place in the capital city of Kabul. The elderly man stabbed the minor girl and dismembered her before stuffing her remains into several boxes, The Times of India reported.

The police arrested the accused and his son Friday in connection to the crime. The role of the son in the crime was unclear, and it wasn't revealed if the daughters were taken into custody.

The girl was reportedly an adoptive family member of the accused's family, local media reported, adding she used to help them by bringing daily groceries from the market and doing household chores.

"This girl was like a family member of the family, she was bringing groceries to them from the market but she was stabbed in her neck first in her belly and was finally put in cartons," a local resident said, according to the Khaama Press News Agency.

Local residents urged the Taliban to sentence the culprits with capital punishment.

The Taliban had seized power in Afghanistan in August, two weeks before the U.S. set to complete its troop withdrawal after a costly two-decade war. The insurgents captured all major cities in a matter of days and started governing the country.

A similar incident took place in Nigeria in June when a pastor allegedly killed a 13-year-old girl to harvest her heart and organs for gruesome ritual purposes. According to the Latin Times, the crime took place in the commercial town of Agbor. The victim had been identified as Nwafor Blessing. Local reports said at the time the remains of the young girl were found dumped near the Central Hospital Agbor. Her body was discovered with its rib cage ripped open, her heart and vital organs missing. Preliminary investigation revealed the victim and her mother were members of a church where the suspect presided over as a pastor. The pastor allegedly lured the girl by promising to "help" her, and then allegedly killed her and removed her vital organs.