Man who ‘drowned’ taking a selfie returns home safe

Says he spent 10 days in a forest in the custody of unknown men

SUKKUR: A man who drowned in Sukkur while taking a selfie on January 4 returned home safely after 10 days.

Asif Jameel Joseph, 32, a resident of Christian Colony New Yard Rohri, slipped when he tried taking a selfie with his wife on the Lansdowne Bridge. Rescue teams launched a five-day-long operation to recover his body but were unsuccessful.



On Saturday, Asif showed up at Rohri’s taluka hospital. Speaking to the media in Rohri, he said that he fell into the river while taking a selfie and lost his senses. When he became conscious, he found himself lying in a forest with a few men standing around him. Those men kept him with them for all these days, refusing to let him go. They released him 10 days later after taking pity on him, he claimed. Sukkur SSP Amjad Ahmed Shaikh told The Express Tribune that Asif shared the same story with the police when they went to his house to record his statement. Since the relatives did not file a complaint with the police, the law enforcers were waiting for the body to surface, he said.



If the Pakistan Navy divers, who spent a lot of time in the rescue operation, want to lodge a complaint against Asif, then we will take action for sure, said SSP Shaikh.

While the family rejoiced his return, Asif’s neighbours claimed that the entire incident was staged. Asif was under severe debt and was unable to pay back the money, claimed one of his neighbours, adding that the death was staged to dodge the people he owed money. Asif’s family was not available to comment on these allegations.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2017.