AVCC used a SIM card to trace child's kidnappers

Zaheer and Zaki were killed in a shoot-out a day after they released the boy they kidnapped

KARACHI: It was the use of the SIM card of the stolen mobile phone of seven-year-old Abban's mother that eventually led the police's Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) to trace the kidnappers and kill them in a shoot-out.

Abban was kidnapped for ransom on December 6 while he was on his way home with his mother from his school in Defence Housing Authority Phase VIII. Two kidnappers intercepted the car, snatched the mother's mobile phone and kidnapped Abban. They shifted the child to a location in Gulistan-e-Jauhar and demanded ransom from the family for his release. The abductors used a rented car in the kidnapping.

According to the findings of Express News, the AVCC traced one of the suspected kidnappers, engineering graduate M Zaheer Mirza, son of Ramzan Mirza, when he used the mother's stolen iPhone. Once the battery of the iPhone ran out, Zaheer inserted its SIM into another mobile phone to send a message to his accomplice, Zaki. According to AVCC SP Abdullah Ahmed, the police traced the location of the suspected kidnappers through the use of the SIM.

Abban was released by the suspects on December 8 after they received the ransom. The AVCC, however, continued the chase and conducted a joint raid with the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) at the suspects' hideout near Kamran Chowrangi in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. An exchange of fire reportedly occurred between the suspects and law enforcers, resulting in the deaths of both Zaheer and Zaki.

Both the suspected kidnappers were friends. Zaki had been living in Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block D while Zaheer was a resident of Block E.

Engineer turned 'kidnapper'

Zaheer originally hailed from Lahore. A few years back he had shifted from his residence in Nishat Colony in the Cantt area of Lahore to a rented apartment in Karachi's Gulistan-e-Jauhar. Despite being an engineer, he had been unemployed for the past few months. Zaheer also once went to jail over charges of possessing an illegal weapon.



However, this was his first involvement in kidnapping, which eventually cost him his life.

Seven months ago, he suffered a fracture in his leg due to an accident and had to undergo two surgeries. He was forced to rest at home and could not work, which landed him in debt. He had been offering tuitions before but, due to the injury, he lost all his students and his source of income. Zaheer's creditors had started visiting his house, demanding the return of their loans.

Zaheer was the only brother amongst three sisters. His brother-in-law Shafiq said that he had asked him for loans many times and the last time he had given him Rs5,000. His mother fainted after hearing the news of his death and sustained injuries.

A prior kidnapping in the family

Zaheer's family also suffered due to a kidnapping incident before. Muhammad Hafeez, the 21-year-old son of his sister, who also held an American nationality, was kidnapped for ransom in Defence. He was tortured during his captivity. Although the kidnappers released him after receiving Rs12 million in ransom, he later died of injuries in Dubai where he was sent for treatment.



Those involved in his kidnapping have not been arrested till date.
"My son, Muhammad Hafeez, was released after having undergone brutal torture," said Hafeez's father Muhammad Shafiq, adding that the family paid Rs12 million for his release. He was his parents' only son and had been studying at a university in the United States.

Hafeez was kidnapped in July 2012 outside his friend's house. Shafiq said his son had arrived from the US to visit his grandfather. The kidnappers had been monitoring his movement for many days and finally managed to abduct him. He was released after the family paid Rs12 million in ransom to the kidnappers. The abductors called Shafiq to Shikarpur to hand over the ransom money.



Shafiq alleged that he had informed former CPLC chief Ahmed Chinoy and SSP Niaz Khoso about the kidnapping but they did not cooperate with him. Hafeez was released in a critical condition and was recovered from a house in the Saeedabad area of Karachi after the abductors had received the money. The victim had been seriously wounded. He was sent to Dubai for treatment where he succumbed to his injuries.