Remand of single arrested accused man extended till December 2

ATC extends physical remand of the only man arrested for the carnage at the Shershah scrap market.

KARACHI: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) has extended till December 2 the physical remand of the only man arrested for the carnage at the Shershah scrap market.

On Friday, accused Lal Muhammad Magsi was presented before ATC administrative judge Justice Maqbool Baqar. Magsi informed the court that he has not been maltreated by the police during custody.

According to the police file, Magsi was arrested from Gulbahar with a .222 rifle and ammunition. He was booked under the Arms Ordinance Section 13-D on charges of possessing illegal arms.

The accused disclosed his identity during interrogation and it was found that he was wanted in the Shershah attack case. He was handed over to the Pak Colony police, who acquired physical custody for further interrogation since an FIR against Magsi was registered at that station. According to the remand request, the police are also hoping to arrest Magsi’s accomplices, who are still at large.

The absconding men have been identified as Hameed alias Mulla Raju, Noor Muhammad alias Baba Ladla, Imdad Hussain, Shafi Muhammad Magsi, Jawwad, Nawaz, Iqbal, Ejaz, Akbar, Tehseen, Rashid, Abid, Pervez, Tufail, Rasheed and Asghar.

Muhammad Naseem filed an FIR (578/2010), under the Pakistan Penal Code’s sections 302, 324 and 386, and the Anti-Terrorism Act’s Section 7, against these suspects on October 20 at Pak Colony police station.

The attack on Shershah scrap market took place on October 19, when 12 shopkeepers were killed and seven others were injured. The deceased were identified as Muhammad Asif, Muhammad Arif, Amjad Ali, Zubair, Umair, Irshad, Mansoor, Nasir, Kashif, Tariq, Anees and Ghulam Rasool while Kashif, Arsalan, Rashid, Zeeshan, Abdul Sami, Arif and Imran sustained bullet injuries.

Witnesses reported that at least a dozen armed men, allegedly belonging to one of the Lyari gangs, stormed into the market and dragged the victims out of their shops before killing them. The victim’s families believed that the shopkeepers were targeted upon their refusal to pay extortion.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2010.