Pakistan

Akora Khattak operation: Six suspects held over Ali Haider’s kidnapping

Captive recovered from raid says former PM’s son was brought to house he was held in.

Jehanzeb Khattak May 17, 2013

Ali Haider Gilani. PHOTO: FILE

NOWSHERA:

Six suspects were arrested allegedly in connection with the kidnapping of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s son in a sting operation carried out by security agencies in Nowshera district.

A captive, identified as Abdul Wahab, was recovered from their custody, while Gilani’s son remains missing.

DPO Nowshera Waqar Ahmad told reporters that law enforcement agencies and police carried out a mid-night operation that continued till Thursday morning to recover Ali Haider Gilani, who was kidnapped on May 9 from Multan during a corner meeting.

The official said they raided a house in the Marhati Mera area in the limits of Akora Khattak and arrested six abductors, including two women.

Another senior police official of Nowshera, who participated in the sting operation, said that they formed a special squad to track down Ali Haider based on intelligence information. He added that they had blocked all entry and exit routes of Marhati Mera and launched a search operation.

Recovered captive, Abdul Wahab, a resident of Orakzai Agency, said that he was taking part in an election campaign in the agency when he was abducted. “When I was kidnapped and brought here three other persons were already in their captivity while another person was brought sometime after me,” he added.

He said the last person claimed to be a former premier’s son but did not disclose his name. He added that the man was bald.

Wahab confirmed later that the man was in fact Ali Haider after he was shown pictures of the latter.

The police official from Nowshera said that efforts to recover Ali Haider were under way.

The arrested abductors have been identified as Najibullah, his father Mala, his uncle and brother whose name could not be ascertained along with two women, Safia and Saliha. Initial investigations reveal that the abductors are Afghan citizens.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 17^th, 2013.