ATC judge accuses Osama Satti murder case IO of collusion

Takes IO to task for failing to present picture that shows youth was shot at from front of vehicle

PHOTO: EXPRESS

ISLAMABAD:

Anti-terrorism court (ATC) judge Raja Jawad Abbas accused on Wednesday the investigation officer (IO) in the murder case of 22-year-old Osama Satti of colluding with the suspects.

The ATC granted a week-long physical remand of the five police officers arrested for the youth's murder in Islamabad.

The accused include Mudassar Iqbal, Shakeel Ahmed, Muhammad Mustafa, Saeed Ahmed and Iftikhar Ahmed. The cops were booked in the case on the request of the slain 22-year-old's father.

The judge's remarks came about when the investigating officer failed to present photographs of the victim's vehicle from the front, that would ascertain where the shots were taken from.

"Where is the picture of the seat on which the bullet hit him?" the judge inquired. The officer responded to the question saying he did not have that photograph.

"You have brought the picture that shows he was shot at from behind, but not the one that shows he was shot at from the front," the judge stated.

“It seems that you are all working together,” the judge said, further questioning the reason for shooting at the victim.

The court also inquired about the number of shots fired during the incident. To which, the investigative officer responded that five shots were fired at the vehicle from the rear.

The plaintiff accused the investigative officer of tempering with the evidence. The court ordered to make everything a part of the record.

“Did the bullet enter through the roof and go inside the seat?” the judge questioned asking if they were shot at by Satti.

“Was he [Satti] operating a rocket launcher? What was the purpose of the shooting? Every time a car doesn’t stop will you start shooting?” the ATC judge added.

“How big of a terrorist was the boy to have been shot and killed in such a manner,” Judge Abbas asked, further stating that there were thousands of proclaimed offenders roaming around in Islamabad.

On Jan 2, at around 2am, Osama had gone to drop his friend in Sector H-11. When he was returning, the police officials intercepted his vehicle in Sector G-10 and fired at him from all sides.

The CTD cops killed Osama with proper planning which was a terrorist act, the FIR further stated.

However, all the personnel refuted charges of engaging in a fight with the victim any time before the incident.

A day ago, the Joint Investigation Committee (JIT) probing Satti’s murder recovered four weapons from the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel who shot dead the 22-year old youth.

The suspects nominated in the FIR filed by the deceased’s father, were presented before the JIT for recording their testimonies, officials of the Islamabad police told The Express Tribune, a day earlier.

The JIT has seized the pistol from the ASI and three sub-machine guns from the four arrested constables.

In his testimony before the JIT, ASI Hafiz Iftikhar Ahmed, who was heading the CTD squad that chased, surrounded and sprayed Satti’s car with bullets, and the other four constables refuted the charges that it was a premeditated murder.

The victim’s father stated in the report filed at the Ramna police station that his son Osama had a quarrel with officials of the capital police a day earlier who had threatened him with dire consequences.

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