KARACHI, Nov 28: Ayub Afridi, a drug baron, was convicted on Wednesday by the special customs court, which sentenced him to suffer rigorous imprisonment for seven years.
The drug smuggler, who was arrested by the local authorities on his arrival from the US on Aug 26, 1999, after serving a jail term for drug smuggling, was also fined Rs5 million by Judge Salman Ansari.
Afridi, who will have to undergo an additional two-year term in case of default on the payment of fine, was convicted for his involvement in the trafficking of 17.5 tonnes of hashish, seized near Hub Dam on April 24, 1985.
The judge, however, acquitted the drug baron in two other cases; one pertained to smuggling of 6.6 tonnes to Belgium. The consignment of the contraband narcotics was seized in Belgium on May 25, 1983. Two other alleged drug barons, Anver Khattak and Gul Khan Khattak, were earlier prosecuted and acquitted in this case in 1991. The second case against Ayub Afridi pertained to smuggling of electronics goods, including wireless sets, worth million of rupees, in the country in 1990. Three other accused in this case, Anver Khattak, Mansoor Alam and Mirza Iqbal Beg, were tried and acquitted by the court in 1991. The smuggled goods were allegedly seized at the house of Anver Khattak.
ACQUITTED: The special anti-narcotics court, headed by Judge Ali Nawaz Pirzada, acquitted a man, prosecuted for possessing 10 kgs of heroin.
Muhammed Pervaiz, arrested on July 28, 2000, by the Customs authorities in Baldia Town, was exonerated from the charges as the prosecution could not prove its case against him.
The accused, along with an unknown accomplice, was on his way in a yellow cab (PH-4197) when the custom officials intercepted and arrested him with the contraband drug. His accomplice, however, escaped.
CONVICTED: The anti-narcotics court sentenced a drug peddler to a two-year term for possessing 400 grams charas.
Gul Muhammed, arrested on July 14, 1999, by the ANF officials, was also fined Rs5,000. He will have to undergo an additional three-month term in case of default.
The judge sentenced another drug trafficker to a four-year term.
Ismail Khan was arrested on June 26, 2000, by the Pirabad police, with two kgs of charas.
The judge also imposed a fine of Rs40,000 on the accused, who would have to undergo an additional six-month term in case of default on the payment.
Syed Noor alias Toor Khan was sentenced to an 18- month term for possessing 200 grams charas and accused Abdul Nasah to a two-year term for possessing 500 grams charas.
The two drug peddlers, arrested early this year by the Baldia Town police, were also fined Rs5,000 by the judge.
BANDIT SENTENCED: The district and sessions judge, Central, Zafar Ahmed Sherwani, sentenced a bandit to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 10 years.
Ahmed Raza, who had looted 5,000 UK pounds from the house of Major Mujibur Rahman, on March 16, last year in Gulberg, was also fined Rs5,000.
The court, however, acquitted a co-accused, Muhammed Azam, for want of incriminating evidence against him.
