Deadly blaze: Baldia factory arsonist confesses in court

Rehman was recently arrested from Thailand by Interpol as he remained absconding since his name surfaced

KARACHI: A key suspect in the Baldia Factory blaze, Abdul Rehman alias Bhola, confessed on Thursday to his involvement in causing the fire over non-payment of extortion.

Rehman was recently arrested from Thailand through Interpol as he remained absconding since his name surfaced in the case.

He was presented in the court of a District West judicial magistrate for recording of his statement under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

According to a court official, the suspect confessed to setting the factory on fire after the factory owners refused to pay extortion money. He named another suspect, Zubair alias Charya, as his accomplice in the attack.

Two-hundred-and-sixty-people were killed in the fire at the Ali Enterprises garment factory in Baldia Town on September 11, 2012.

He said that the then Karachi Tanzimi Committee in-charge, Hammad Siddiqui of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, had asked him to demand Rs250 million in extortion from the factory owners. The suspect himself was a sector in-charge of the party.

After recording his statement, the judge sent the suspect to jail on judicial remand.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23^rd, 2016.