Pakistan

Benazir assassination: Cell phones of suspects recovered

Suspect's cell phones has now opened new leads for the investigation team.

Express January 30, 2011

ISLAMABAD: In the latest development in the Benazir Bhutto assassination case, the joint investigation team conducting the inquiry has managed to recover the cell phones of two leading suspects.

Prior to this, the suspects in the case SP Rawal Town, Superintendent Police Khurram Shehzad and former CPO Saud Aziz both refused to provide the cell phones they had used on the day of Bhutto's assassination. Both suspects initially claimed that they had lost their sets, and later also reportedly provided the investigation team with fake phones.

In an earlier report in The Express Tribune, Public prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar had revealed that the police officers had not given the mobile phones which they had used on the day of the assassination.

“Saud Aziz gave mobiles phones of 2008 and 2009 models. After forensic laboratory tests it was proven that this phone was not used by the police officials and in fact was in the use of Ramzan, a resident of Karachi,” the prosecutor maintained.

The unique International Mobile Equipment Identity number on the suspect's cell phones has now opened new leads for the investigation team. The most important lead is the numbers of several government officials with whom the former suspects had been keeping in touch on the day of the assassination.

COMMENTS (15)

observer | 13 years ago | Reply Quite shameful for both the police officials. They were running the business of policing and investigations in the crime. Look at their behaviour, they know the importance of the cell phone and they are trying to hide the evidence like a typical criminal.

Anwer+Kamal+Pasha | 13 years ago | Reply Main reason of washing the crime scene was to remove the sims of mobile of attackers.

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Lag | 13 years ago | Reply I have serious disagreements with the current goverment on its economic and foreign policies, yet i am compelled to say that pakistanis opposing the ppp all the time are serving no one but the dark forces sitting in the secret corners of this country, that is, the establishment. There very forcess use media and politicians to form anti ppp public opinion. Opposing every step of the investigation into BB's murder is their vested interest. Was BB murdered by a 15 year old boy sent by baitulla mehsood? Let's believe in the nonsense for the sake of argument. Who then washed away the crime scene, let not the doctors have autopsy of many others killed beside BB?Why then the pro establishment or antidemocracy leaders/media/people opposed the idea of investigations to be conducted by the un?What about the doubts raised by un report on the role of some rogue elements in the all powerful agencies?All facts lead towards one point: the state was involved in BB's murder.

Discostu | 13 years ago | Reply Jinnah was killed? How did we all miss this? Ali razavi, you should read more before you write. Revisionist historians are no different from those who hijack our religion.

Anwer+Kamal+Pasha | 13 years ago | Reply What is a use of mobile set..Everything is the record of the calls which can be obtained. Can be used in evidence only. How far are the killers ?/ Everyone knew. Only question that do Zardari or Gailni have courage to go after them?

ali | 13 years ago | Reply @mobilinkboy yes i know exactly which phone i was using and I have it. I'm not even joking. Not everyone has an OCD to change their phone every 2 months. and if nothing else, now they know the IMEI number which will help to look at all the sims used in this phone and then find the record of those numbers. and so what if they are being pressurised? obviously they know something which they're not telling and I feel it is a great step to put max pressure on them to find out what they know. I'm assuming you haven't been following this case and just commented. An officer from within the police has given testimony against him that he ordered removal of nafri from the area and all these matters are not reported properly by the media so most people don't know.

fahad rasheed | 13 years ago | Reply @Canuckistani: you are right Canuckistani

MobilinkBoy | 13 years ago | Reply @ ali Do you know which handset you were using over three years ago? Do you still have it? How many people do you think keep the same handset for that long? I might also add that I have 3 years worth of prior experience of forensics. If there ever was anything to find in those phones, which I highly doubt, there is no way that they will find anything now. Of course what you never know which such things in Pakistan is that those in power can place any allegation on someone's head and then leave them to deal with it. These are probably innocent people who do not have the so called "backing" of some political big wig which I why they are stuck otherwise they would be roaming free as well like so many others who are now outside of Pakistan. FIA investigated these same officers 18 months ago and gave them the all clear. This time however it appears that the government is apply a lot of pressure, meddling with judicial affairs to make something up.

Wasif | 13 years ago | Reply @MobilinkBoy: I agree with you. I also doubt the authenticity of this story considering that cell phone records are one of the first things which are investigated after a crime.

Canuckistani | 13 years ago | Reply Its simple. Zardari said he knows who killed her. Let's interrogate him to find out what he knows and why he isn't telling us

ali | 13 years ago | Reply @mobilinkboy welcome to the world of forensics! a lot can be found from them. and we all know the intelligence wallahs must have tampered the cell phone companies records!

Ali Razavi | 13 years ago | Reply After 1947 when Pakistan was formed, over half a century has passed but: (A) killers of Founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah were neither caught nor punished. The nation was not even told, nor understands to this day, that death was forced on Quaid-e-Azam. (B) Pakistan's first Prime Minister Liaqat Ali Khan was assassinated. His killers were neither caught nor punished to this day. (C) So many years ago, Murtuza Bhutto (son of popular Prime Minister of Pakistan Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, founder of Pakistan People's Party, executed to death) was ambushed and killed but his killers were neither caught nor punished. Benazir Bhutto had a large following of millions of people who were shocked at her death yet one sees so few comments on this topic related to her assassination, the reasons of which may be many, some quite obvious. What do you say rulers?

MobilinkBoy | 13 years ago | Reply What difference does it make that a handset has been recovered? No handset would ever show a record of calls made that far back. Any technical mobile networks expert could tell you that the history of calls and messages would only be available through the network providers (Mobilink, Telenor, Ufone etc). This inormation has been available to Scotland Yard, the UN, FIA and the Police since 2007 yet nobody has been able to prove anything. This is no case here. What a load of rubbish! I am surprised that a paper like the Tribune can print such stories without any corroboration. The journalistic standard in Pakistan is falling everday. This is old news just being recycled to keep reminding the PPP's voters.

Shafaqat Ali | 13 years ago | Reply hmmm, here is the threatening twist in the entire episode. Many bigs names would emerge now. Fingers Crossed

Aftab Kenneth Wilson | 13 years ago | Reply Please don't look here and there in this investigation. Who so ever found collaborating in this brutal murder of Bibi must face punishment at any cost. This is a test case for a civilian government to net in all what ever the consequences they may have to face. The same is in the case of brutal murder of deceased governor of Punjab Mr. Salman Taseer. His killers, supporters and perpetrators must also face the law of the land. Killing in the name of God or Prophets or even people having different opinions on certain religious issues must now stop in our country before things get out of hand. Please don't use religion to further any political agenda because religion is a very Sacred Thing for all humanity.

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