PAF officer's murder suspect sent to jail

ATC orders suspect's appearance on July 20 after completion of identification process

ISLAMABAD:

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Sunday sent Saad Abbasi, the suspect in the murder of Group Captain Asim Tariq, to jail on a 14-day judicial remand for an identification parade.

The accused was produced before ATC Judge Abu Al-Hasanat Zulqarnain with his face covered.

Special Public Prosecutor Raja Naveed Hussain and Investigation Officer Akhtar Hussain informed the court that two eyewitnesses were available and the identification process was required.

The court observed that the suspect had been arrested a day earlier and faced serious charges involving the killing of an armed forces officer.

It directed jail authorities not to allow any change in the suspect's face, appearance or physical features until the identification parade was completed. The suspect has been ordered to be produced before the court again on July 20.

Meanwhile, an FIR of the case was registered including charges of murder and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

The FIR, lodged on the complaint of Wing Commander Imran Khurram Nawaz, states that Group Captain Asim Tariq stopped the accused from forcibly misbehaving with a girl, upon which the accused opened fire on him. He died on the spot.

The FIR also names two eyewitnesses, Muhammad Kamran and Waseem.

Separately, Islamabad Inspector General of Police Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi said the accused opened fire on Group Captain Asim Tariq after the officer intervened when the suspect allegedly tried to forcibly take a woman with him.

Addressing a press conference, the IG said the shooting occurred at 11:21am and the suspect was arrested within nine hours. He said the accused and the woman worked at the same cash-and-carry store in Melody and had previously visited together.

On the day of the incident, the suspect allegedly wanted to take the woman to a park or another location, but she refused. The officer intervened after witnessing the altercation, whereupon the suspect turned back on his motorcycle and shot him.

The IG said 11 police teams investigated the case, reviewed footage from 275 Safe City cameras and used artificial intelligence tools to trace the suspect, who belongs to Abbottabad.

He was arrested in Islamabad after allegedly purchasing a Skyways bus ticket and switching off his mobile phone data.