Court acquits accused in 2008 GPO suicide attack case

The prosecutor failed to provide any admissible evidence against Shahzad resulting in his acquittal.

LAHORE: The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) acquitted an accused, Shahzad, in the 2008 GPO suicide attack case on Wednesday after police failed to produce any concrete evidence against him.

The suicide attack on General Post Office (GPO) chowk had left 22 people, including 19 police officials, dead and several others injured. Shahzad, along with two others, was accused of abatement, planning of the attack and helping the suicide bomber.

Shahzad was arrested while the two other accused, Abdul Hameed and Imran Khalil, are still at large.

During the case hearing, the prosecutor also failed to provide any admissible evidence against Shahzad resulting in his acquittal.

According to a police report compiled on January 10, 2008, the blast took place when a lawyers’ procession was about to pass through the Mall Road in Lahore.

A suicide bomber had appeared from near the State Bank of Pakistan building and blew himself up at the police barriers, killing police officials who were deployed for security.