Key suspect in Parween Rehman murder case sent on two-week remand

Police arrested Rahim Swati during a raid in Karachi's Manghopir area and recovered weapons from his possession

KARACHI: The prime suspect in Parween Rehman’s murder case was remanded on Monday into police custody for two weeks in Karachi.

On Saturday, police had arrested the suspect, Rahim Swati, during a raid from Karachi's Manghopir area and recovered a 9mm pistol and a hand-grenade from his possession. Swati’s son Imran Swati was already in the custody of law enforcement agencies.

Rehman, the director of the Orangi Pilot Project, was gunned down by unidentified armed motorcyclists in a driveby shooting near Banaras Flyover on March 13, 2013.



According to the investigating officer, Swati is under investigation for his alleged involvement in an encounter [with police] as well as for the murder of the social activist.

Meanwhile, an anti-terrorism court has sought a report from police to apprise the court on the next hearing of the case on May 20.

Talking to the media on April 7, SSP Azfar Mahesar said Swati was arrested from the Manghopir’s Sultanabad area with the ammunition in his possession.



Further, dozens of suspects involved in land grabbing, water tanker mafia and extortion were also arrested by a joint interrogation team, which concluded that Swati was the key player behind the murder.