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| November 27, 2005 | Sunday | Shawwal 24, 1426 |
Wagon in-charge found negligent: Eight suspended for captives’ escape
SARGODHA, Nov 26: A preliminary inquiry conducted by the district police higher-ups to ascertain the cause of escape of nine criminals from police custody has found the wagon in-charge responsible for the incident. Nine criminals escaped the other day while they were being transported to Sargodha for production in various courts.
Sargodha DPO Muhammad Naeem Khan has already suspended from service reserve inspector Muhammad Aslam, SI Mazhar Husain, head constables, Muhammad Akbar and Muhammad Nawaz, besides constables — Tauqir Gillani, Muhammad Razzaq, Agha Khan and Altaf Husain.
Information gleaned by Dawn revealed that head constable Muhammad Nawaz, who was the prison wagon in-charge, constables Tauqir, Razzaq, Agha Khan and Altaf Husain (driver), were deputed to escort Talat Husain and Sajjad on the request of the Faisalabad district jail authorities to produce them in the Sargodha district courts. A letter No 15508 was issued to the Sargodha Police Lines on Nov 26, 2005.
Moreover, wagon in-charge Nawaz had also received two other letters No 15497 on Nov 17 last, seeking production of two prisoners, Shahid Iqbal and Akram, on 26th. Yet another communique (15967) from the Faisalabad district prison sought production of three accused namely Akram, Mukhtar and Sher Muhammad on Nov 26.
Besides, the jail officials were supposed to produce seven other accused — Muhammad Khan, Muhammad Nadeem, Muhammad Akbar, Zafar, Muhammad Azam, Sarfraz and Sher Ali — in Sargodha courts, but the head constable neither provided such an information to the Sargodha Police Lines nor did he seek security from the Bhalwal police station for escorting the prisoners.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Sargodha police had sought approval from the home secretary about the jail trial of Muhammad Azam and Muhammad Khan, two hardened criminals. They were, therefore, retained by the jail authorities while the other five prisoners were handed over to the head constable, who had allowed Razzaq and Tauqir to leave the escort before proceeding to Faisalabad. Thus, he and constable Agha Khan escorted 11 prisoners.
They were being transported to Sargodha by van (SG-6744) when nine of them took to heels as the guard and the driver were taking meals at a roadside hotel on the Sargodha-Faisalabad Road near Chiniot.
It is learnt that a waiter was allowed to take meals inside the van cabin, which was specially opened for providing food to the prisoners.
Meanwhile, it is alleged that head constable Nawaz provided an opportunity to prisoners to escape and, later, staged a drama of exchange of fire. Further raising doubts about his role was the fact that the nine prisoners had lethal weapons.
How the jail authorities allowed the two policemen to escort many hardened criminals is the million-dollar question, as the officials were supposed to provide data about the prisoners before escorting them to court.
The nine captives were associates of notorious criminal Azam Kurar, who had confessed over three dozen crimes of heinous nature. A ban was imposed on his shifting from jail to courts.
As there was apparently no outsider involved in the crime, it is still to be verified as to how the prisoners obtained weapons and why two of them, Akram and Nawaz, stayed there. The nine absconders were earlier involved in the Sargodha jail riot several months ago.
Muhammad Akram, who is facing murder trial, told police that he did not escape because the aggrieved party had reached a compromise with him and he would be set at liberty within a couple of months.
Serving life imprisonment, Nawaz was optimistic that he would be released soon as, according to him, he had completed his term.
Akram told police that when the hotel boy brought tea for the prisoners within the cabin, nine of them managed to escape even with handcuffs and fettered feet, dropping a hint that they faced the least resistance. He, however, had no idea as to how they got the arms.
Meanwhile, the DPO has set up a high-level inquiry team under the supervision of SP (Investigation) Abdul Hameed Khan. ASP (City) Mansoorur Rehman Rana, Bhalwal ASP Munir Masood Marth and Kotmomin DSP Syed Ishtiaq Husain Shah are other members of the committee, which had been asked to submit a report within 10 days.
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