Extrajudicial death: Police round up last suspect

Zaib was reportedly the one whom the victim was trying to rob in the park.

KARACHI:

Investigators probing the extrajudicial killing of a young man by Rangers personnel have arrested another key suspect allegedly involved in the incident here on Friday.

Alam Zaib, nominated in the FIR registered at Boat Basin police station on the complaint of the victim Sarfaraz Shah’s elder brother Salik, was arrested Friday night, sources privy to the matter told The Express Tribune.

Salik had nominated eight suspects, including six Rangers personnel and two civilians, in the case.

The Rangers personnel and one civilian named Afsar Khan are already in police custody.

The accused Zaib was initially posted to the Crime Investigation Department but was transferred to Capital City Police last month, sources say.

Investigators also detained a friend of Zaib for questioning, they added.

The already arrested accused Afsar Khan, in his recorded statement to the police, said that Shah was trying to rob Zaib and his family inside Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Park before he was killed by the Rangers personnel.

Zaib, however, in his recorded statement told the police that the victim was not trying to rob him or his family and Khan registered a fake case, sources say.

Zaib and his friend have been shifted to an undisclosed location for further questioning, sources add.

No official, including head of the investigation team Sultan Khawaja, was available for comment.

Salik, however, confirmed the arrest of the Zaib and his friend.

Meanwhile, the police managed to meet the Supreme Court’s seven-day deadline to wrap up their investigations into the extrajudicial killing case on Friday, but the investigating officer asked for one more day to submit his report.

DIG Khawaja appeared before the court along with the accused men in custody and informed the administrative judge that he has wrapped up investigations and the police do not need to keep the accused in physical custody any more. He requested the court to send them into judicial custody.







Published in The Express Tribune, June 18th, 2011.