Alleged killer of bar secretary arrested

Suspect worked as a senior clerk at victim’s office

LAHORE:

Police claimed to have arrested the suspect involved in the murder of the Punjab Bar Council secretary.

This was revealed by Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore Ghulam Mehmood Dogar during a press conference held at his office on Thursday flanked by senior police officers including DIG Investigations Athar Ismail and SSP Investigations Imran Kishwar.

Dogar said the assassin had been identified as Arsalan Butt, a senior clerk at the victim’s office.

Deceased Muhammad Ashraf had caught Butt red-handed while stealing valuables office and expelled him from his job and also registered a criminal case against him at Civil Lines Police station. Butt was frustrated over it and shot him dead after an opportunity while accomplice by his other friend Ahmad to avenge Ashraf’s punitive disciplinary actions.

Dogar said initially it was registered as a blind murder case as the victim was shot dead when he was driving in his car near Badami Bagh Bridge on the night of July 23.

SSP Investigations Imran Kishwar said the investigations were started with a broader scope because Ashraf had issues with a large number of people. Police started the case while taking 11 different leads. In one angle, the family members were grilled as he had a dispute with his brother-in-law who reportedly had handed him over fake gold in a business deal. Ashraf was annoyed with him. He had other professional and personal impending matters also.

When police worked on all the leads, it was narrowed down to the suspect Arsalan Butt. Kishwar added that help from modern technology, data analysis and mobile locations was also taken during the investigations.

Dogar while speaking on the occasion said that the crime during last month when he took charge as CCPO decreased 12% as 15 calls data showed. However, he admitted that the crime in the first eight months of the year had increased 200% when compared to the eight months of the last year.

The maxim goes “detection is the best prevention”, Dogar added. Crime cannot be eradicated 100%. However, it can be slashed with better policing.

Lahore Police had arrested as many as 1909 members of 247 gangs and recovered over 1119.6 million rupees worth of cash and snatched/stolen property during the ongoing years.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, September 16^th, 2022.