Remand of Safoora bus-attack carnage suspects extended

An antiterrorism court on Friday extended the police remand of four suspects allegedly involved in the Safoora bus carnage for two weeks in total nine cases.

The court also remanded a recently held suspect in police custody in two cases pertaining to possessing illicit weapons, explosive material and encounter with police.

The police produced in court the four suspects — Tahir Hussain Minhas alias Sain alias Nazir alias Zahid alias Naveed alias Khalil alias Shaukat alias Mota, Saad Aziz alias Tin Tin alias John, Hafiz Nasir alias Yasir and Mohammad Azhar Ishrat alias Majid — after the end of their earlier police remand.

Their newly arrested accomplice, Asad-ur-Rehman alias Malik, was also produced along with them in court amid tightened security.

The police submitted that they arrested a new suspect in Gulshan-i-Maymar on June 4 and found explosive material and unlicensed weapons in his custody.

They claimed that the recovered weapons —9mm pistols — were allegedly used in 33 cases of targeted killings and had been sent for a forensic analysis.

While the police informed the court that suspect Asad was also involved in the Safoora bus carnage, they sought his custody for questioning in two cases of possessing illicit weapons and explosives and an encounter with police.

The investigation officer of the cases also asked the court to extend the remand of other four suspects since they were being questioned by a joint investigation team.

The defence counsel opposed the police remand and argued that the police have been seeking custody for questioning in Safoora Goth incident, but they have not arrested them yet in the main case and just creating a hype through media trial.

The judge of the ATC-II allowed extension in police remand of the four suspects and also remanded suspect Asad in police custody till June 19.
Custodial death case

A judicial magistrate on Friday remanded four policemen in police custody in a custodial death case.

Sub-Inspector Zameer Hussain, head constable Khair Mohammad and constables Sikandar Ali and Asadullah have been booked and arrested for killing a Muttahida Qaumi Movement worker, Muhammad Waseem, who was tortured to death on June 3 at the Aziz

Bhittai police station. The police had booked the deceased in an illicit weapon case.