Murder mystery: Attack on twins stumps their family
Their father says that they had friends from every ethnic group and sect.
Haider (left) and Jamal (right) were attacked on January 4 at a short distance from their house in Agra Taj Colony. PHOTO COURTESY FAMILY
KARACHI:
Brothers Jamal and Haider Qadri shared a lot of things - the same birthday, physical features, group of friends and both were targeted in an armed attack near their home on January 2. The one difference between them was that while Haider survived, Jamal was not as fortunate.
The 23-year-old identical twins were shot as they were on their way to the Government Commerce College in Sultanabad, where they were supposed to sit for an exam. They set off at around noon from their house in Agra Taj Colony, Lyari, in their car - a Mehran - with Jamal in the driver’s seat and Haider beside him in the passenger seat. As they stopped at a puncture shop to have the tyres inflated, the assailants closed in from behind.
Unlike other target attacks, there was no spray of bullets. The suspects just fired two shots from a pistol fitted with a silencer. One hit Jamal in the head, killing him on the spot and the other pierced Haider’s neck, seriously injuring him. The boy who was pumping gas into the tyres said that he just heard a couple of cracks and looked up to see the twins bleeding profusely. “I was terrified. I just couldn’t understand what happened and dashed towards the shop.”
The police and eyewitnesses claimed that two suspects were involved in the attack. But the twins’ father, Dr Abdul Ghafoor Qadri, said that Haider told him that there were four men on two motorcycles. Dr Qadri is the senior resident medical officer at Lyari General Hospital and couldn’t comprehend why his sons were targeted. “I lost my world. I served this area for more than 20 years and always cared for people irrespective of caste and creed,” he cried. “Why did they target my innocent sons? They were very liberal and secular. They respected elders and had friends in every sect and ethnic group. They had no personal enmity.”
The attack on the young men comes just days after Shahzeb Khan was gunned down near his home in Phase-V, Defense. One of Dr Qadri’s friends castigated the media for not covering it the same way Shahzeb’s murder was. “The media, police and courts have yet to take action. The boys are from Lyari and don’t have influential people to mount pressure on the system,” he added. “Do humans live only in Defence and Clifton?”
The eyewitness accounts suggest that the assailants were trained hitmen. While talking to The Express Tribune, Islam Gul, said, “The evidences and statements show the killers were very professional. They just shot once at Jamal and he died on the spot and then within seconds they shot Haider once as well.” Eyewitnesses have helped the police draw sketches of the killers.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 7th, 2013.
Brothers Jamal and Haider Qadri shared a lot of things - the same birthday, physical features, group of friends and both were targeted in an armed attack near their home on January 2. The one difference between them was that while Haider survived, Jamal was not as fortunate.
The 23-year-old identical twins were shot as they were on their way to the Government Commerce College in Sultanabad, where they were supposed to sit for an exam. They set off at around noon from their house in Agra Taj Colony, Lyari, in their car - a Mehran - with Jamal in the driver’s seat and Haider beside him in the passenger seat. As they stopped at a puncture shop to have the tyres inflated, the assailants closed in from behind.
Unlike other target attacks, there was no spray of bullets. The suspects just fired two shots from a pistol fitted with a silencer. One hit Jamal in the head, killing him on the spot and the other pierced Haider’s neck, seriously injuring him. The boy who was pumping gas into the tyres said that he just heard a couple of cracks and looked up to see the twins bleeding profusely. “I was terrified. I just couldn’t understand what happened and dashed towards the shop.”
The police and eyewitnesses claimed that two suspects were involved in the attack. But the twins’ father, Dr Abdul Ghafoor Qadri, said that Haider told him that there were four men on two motorcycles. Dr Qadri is the senior resident medical officer at Lyari General Hospital and couldn’t comprehend why his sons were targeted. “I lost my world. I served this area for more than 20 years and always cared for people irrespective of caste and creed,” he cried. “Why did they target my innocent sons? They were very liberal and secular. They respected elders and had friends in every sect and ethnic group. They had no personal enmity.”
The attack on the young men comes just days after Shahzeb Khan was gunned down near his home in Phase-V, Defense. One of Dr Qadri’s friends castigated the media for not covering it the same way Shahzeb’s murder was. “The media, police and courts have yet to take action. The boys are from Lyari and don’t have influential people to mount pressure on the system,” he added. “Do humans live only in Defence and Clifton?”
The eyewitness accounts suggest that the assailants were trained hitmen. While talking to The Express Tribune, Islam Gul, said, “The evidences and statements show the killers were very professional. They just shot once at Jamal and he died on the spot and then within seconds they shot Haider once as well.” Eyewitnesses have helped the police draw sketches of the killers.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 7th, 2013.