Policeman arrested over deadly Peshawar Police Lines blast

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General of Police (IG) Akhtar Hayat Gandapur confirmed on Tuesday that a police constable has been arrested in connection with the January 2023 suicide attack in Peshawar’s Police Lines area, which claimed the lives of at least 86 police officers.

The arrested individual, Mohammad Wali, is identified as a key facilitator in the  in the Peshawar Police Lines bombing.

IGP Gandapur, addressing a press conference in Peshawar, stated that Wali was apprehended from Jamil Chowk a few days ago. During the arrest, authorities recovered two suicide jackets from his possession.

According to the IG, the suspect's involvement in the attack was uncovered during the ongoing investigation, revealing that he was serving as a constable in the police department.

KP IGP further disclosed that Wali had previously held meetings with members of the banned militant group Jamaatul Ahrar and its spokesperson, Mohammad Khurasani.

During interrogation, Mohammad Wali revealed that in 2021, he was contacted on Facebook by a man named "Junaid," who was a recruitment agent for the banned militant group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.

Junaid, who was based in Afghanistan, was using social media to recruit members for the group. Junaid invited Wali to meet him in Afghanistan, and in 2021, Wali took leave from his duties and traveled via the Chaman border to meet Junaid in Jalalabad, Afghanistan.

In Afghanistan, Wali met with Junaid, who took him to Shunkar and Chaknawar centres in Kunar, where he was introduced to two top commanders of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, Salahuddin and Mukarram Khorasani. After the meeting, Wali pledged allegiance to the group and joined Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.

He was given a payment of 20,000 rupees for joining the group. On his return to Pakistan, Wali was arrested by Afghan forces but was released after the intervention of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar. In 2023, he resumed his duties at the Peshawar Police Line, the IGP revealed.

Wali told investigators that Junaid had directed him to take revenge for the "martyrdom" of Commander Khalid Khorasani. In January 2023, Wali sent photographs and a map of the Police Line to Junaid via Telegram.

On January 20, 2023, Wali brought the suicide bomber, identified as Qari, a man of Afghan nationality, from Charsadda Mosque to the Police Line mosque and conducted reconnaissance.

Wali took the bomber on a motorcycle to Rahman Baba Cemetery, where the bomber was given a police uniform and a suicide vest. Wali then dropped him off near the Police Line.

The suicide bombing occurred shortly after, and Wali sent a message to Junaid via Telegram, confirming the success of the attack. For his involvement in the attack, Wali received 200,000 rupees, which was transferred through an informal money exchange system.

The prime suspect also confessed to being involved in several other terrorist activities, including the murder of a Christian pastor in Peshawar in January 2022. He claimed to have been behind multiple IED attacks on Warsak Road in Peshawar in 2023 and 2024, and a grenade attack in the Ghulani Market in December 2023.

In February 2024, Wali allegedly facilitated the murder of a Ahmadi man by providing a pistol to a member of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar in Lahore.

Further, in March 2024, Wali provided a pistol to Faisal Butt, who used it to kill two police officers. In May 2024, he supplied explosive materials for terrorist activities in Peshawar.

In June 2024, he assisted in sending a suicide bomber, Lukman, to Lahore with a suicide vest, but Lukman was arrested before he could detonate the bomb.

Wali also hid several other suicide vests in different locations in Peshawar, including on the Motorway Chowk and in Chamakni. He provided video evidence of these activities to Junaid. For his services to the group, Wali received a monthly salary of 40,000-50,000 rupees, which he received through informal money transfer methods (hundi).

It should be noted here that over 100 people had been killed and over 200 were injured in Peshawar mosque suicide bombing attack in 2023.