Videogate: FIA says more arrests likely

Court extends remand period of accused Mian Tariq Mehmood for three days

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Friday told a court that result of forensic test of a 4-GB USB recovered from Mian Tariq Mehmood – an accused in a recent video scandal surrounding a judge– “is positive” and that the FIA is likely to make more arrests on basis of the acquired data.

The FIA made this disclosure in the court of a judicial magistrate, Shaista Kundi, where the accused was brought on completion of his two-day physical remand period.

The FIA on Wednesday claimed to arrest Mehmood, a man nominated in an FIR lodged by Islamabad’s Accountability Court-II Judge Arshad Malik in connection with a video scandal.

In an affidavit submitted by Judge Arshad Malik to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) last Friday, the judge, who convicted former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Al-Azizia case, accused family of the former premier of trying to bribe him into making his own verdict controversial.

The judge had also claimed that he was also tried to be blackmailed.

“Mian Tariq [Mehmood], an old acquaintance from the time I was serving in Multan as additional district and sessions judge from 2000-2003, showed me a secretly recorded and manipulated immoral video in a compromising position saying that is it you doing this when you were serving in Multan,” he said.

The judge had claimed that Mehmood told him to record an audio message, saying that he delivered the [Al-Azizia] verdict to appease the ‘ruling elite’ under an immense pressure and that substantial evidence was not available against the former prime minister.

The accountability court judge’s affidavit appeared after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Maryam Nawaz on July 6 unveiled a controversial video in which Arshad Malik could be seen confessing before a PML-N worker that he was blackmailed into convicted Nawaz Sharif.

On Friday, counsel of the accused, Asif Chaudhry, told the court that he needed to have his Valatnama signed by the accused but the FIA is neither letting him see his client nor is providing copy of the FIR. The court ordered the FIA to allow the counsel see the accused and have a copy of the FIR.

The FIA’s investigation officer Fazal Mehboob told the court since the forensic report of Mehmood’s USB “is positive more arrests are likely to be made”. The accused’s counsel said Mian Tariq Mehood was arrested on July 10 but was presented in the court on July 17.

“His son Faisal is also missing since July 12. Mehmood should also be provided facilities that are given to politicians,” he added.  The judge said there is a procedure to deal with problem of missing person. The lawyer should contact the right forum.

The judge asked the accused if the FIA had stopped torturing him. The accused told the court that after order of the court, he was not subjected to any torture. The court later extended Mehmood’s remand period for three days and asked the FIA to present him in her court on July, 22.