KARACHI: ATC puts off hearing in US diplomat killing case
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 30: An anti-terrorism court put off hearing of the US diplomat killing case against two activists of the Al Qaeda after recording deposition of a prosecution witness.
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 fixed Nov 2 for the next hearing after statements by ASI Zulfiqar Haider, who was also cross-examined by the defence counsel.
Two Al Qaeda activists — Usman Ghani and Anwarul Haq —are being tried for masterminding suicide car bombing to kill US diplomat.
Four people were killed on March 2 when a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden car into the diplomat’s vehicle yards away from the US consulate-general around 9:05am. Consulate official David Foy, his Pakistani driver Iftikhar and Lance Naik Zafar of Rangers were killed instantly.
The blast that took place in a narrow lane between the Marriott Hotel and Naval Surgery Hospital also left over 50 others wounded.
The prosecution witness deposed that he reached the spot around 9:10am on the instruction of his senior. He said he inspected the site of the blast and collected a piece of the bomber’s car. He said the piece of aluminium contained the manufacturing number of the Toyota Corolla.
ASI Haider said his senior official asked him to conduct an inquiry to collect the details of the car used by the suicide bomber. He said on March 3, he went to the Indus Motors where he learnt that the car was supplied to the Islamabad Motors.
Later, he said, it was transpired that the car was snatched in Lahore in 2005.According to the charge-sheet, an informer gave the information to the investigator officer that Mohammed Tahir son of Raja Afzal had left his Landhi house on March 2 after Fajr and later his family was informed of his martyrdom. On Aug 15, the investigation officer visited the house of the suicide bomber and recorded the statement of his father.
Raja Afzal told the investigator that his son had gone to Afghanistan for Jihad for three times and he had also been imprisoned in Afghanistan.
On Aug 18, the investigation officer recorded the statement of Idrees, who also supported the statement of his father.
The brother of the suicide bomber told the IO that he knew one of his brother’s friends, Usman, who had brought his letter to the family from Afghanistan during his detention there.
