Among the bomb paraphernalia, the Bomb Disposal Squad removed four electric detonators, four manual detonators, a 2 kg wire circuit and 40 kg of iron nuts and bolts. PHOTO: INP
The police have not been able to arrest a man and his accomplices, allegedly belonging to a terrorist organisation, accused of plotting a car bombing in the federal capital.
The Bhara Kahu police had seized a car rigged with explosives around midnight on Friday from a house in rural Islamabad and claimed they had foiled a terrorism bid in the federal capital. The car bomb was wired and ready to be exploded by remote control, the police had stated.
According to the First Information Report (FIR) registered at the Bhara Kahu Police Station, a “special informant” had provided the police with a tip about the presence of an explosive-laden car at the house of Hammad Hussain Adil in Phulgran village on Friday.
The police raided the house after getting a search warrant from a magistrate, according to the FIR.
Adil, who is the brother of a senior officer of the Punjab Police, was initially detained by authorities and later released, according to sources. The Punjab Police officer is not currently serving at any operational post, the sources revealed further.
But in the FIR and media statements earlier, police had claimed that Adil --- who, according to the police, was sitting in the car parked inside his house when the raid took place --- escaped by jumping over the back wall of his house after seeing the police.
Police said the car belonged to Adil and he lived with his family at the house. His wife had opened the gate when the police arrived, according to the FIR. Data from a laptop recovered from the house is being analysed by the authorities.
The Bhara Kahu police said no arrests were made in the case on Sunday but they were looking for the suspects. Police claimed that Adil and his unknown accomplices are members of a militant outfit and were planning to strike somewhere in the capital. However, law enforcement officials were not certain about the number of people who might be involved in the alleged plot.
In the the FIR, police also revised the amount of explosives found packed inside the car’s doors and gas cylinder.
The police had earlier said it was 125 kilogrammes, but later raised the figure to 170. Among the bomb paraphernalia, the Bomb Disposal Squad removed four electric detonators, four manual detonators, a 2 kg wire circuit and 40 kg of iron nuts and bolts.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 2nd, 2013.
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