Stolen gold: Woman accuses police of implicating her son in fake case

Says his former employers are pressuring family to reach compromise.

ABBOTABAD: A woman has accused the Abbottabad police of implicating her son in a fake theft case at the behest of his former employer, and of torturing him.

Naseem Bibi told journalists on Tuesday that her son Imran alias Mahni is a former employee of Farasat Jewellers and the shop owners have accused him of stealing gold from them.

According to Naseem, Imran had worked for Farasat Jewellers for over 18 years and was an honest worker, but his employers have accused him of stealing 100 tolas of gold. She said the owners have a years-old routine of counting cash and weighing jewellery pieces every week before allowing their nine employees to go home. “How can my son steal gold and it go unnoticed all this time?” she questioned.

The distraught mother pointed out that other employees are not being questioned and only Imran was detained.

Accompanied by her daughter-in-law Sidra and Imran’s three young children, Naseem accused the police of subjecting her son to brutal physical and mental torture in the 14 days he has been in custody.

She said the police have taken over Rs1 million from her family as a bribe and also confiscated the family’s personal property—two cars and 29 tolas gold—as evidence in their case against Imran. Naseem also accused the owners of Farasat Jewellers of pressuring her family by setting the transfer of her house to them as a condition for reaching a compromise.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2015.