Shahzeb murder case: Shahrukh Jatoi sentenced to death

Published June 7, 2013
Shahrukh Jatoi (R) gestures while his accomplice Siraj Talpur looks on from a court lockup before being convicted for murder in the Karachi on June 7, 2013. —AFP Photo
Shahrukh Jatoi (R) gestures while his accomplice Siraj Talpur looks on from a court lockup before being convicted for murder in the Karachi on June 7, 2013. —AFP Photo
Shahzeb Khan.—File Photo
Shahzeb Khan.—File Photo

KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Karachi sentenced Shahrukh Jatoi, the main accused in the Shahzeb murder case, to death in its verdict on Friday.

Moreover, another suspect, Siraj Talpur, was also awarded capital punishment for his role in the crime.

Whereas, two other suspects in the case, Sajjad Ali Talpur and Ghulam Murtaza Lashari were sentenced to life imprisonment.

The ATC also announced that the convicted individuals would have to pay a fine of Rs 500,000 each. Moreover, Jatoi was handed an added three years prison sentence for illegal possession of weapons.

As soon as the judgment was announced, Jatoi's brother got into an argument with judges and had to be taken out of the court's premises.

Due to which, the detailed judgment of the case could not be signed by those convicted and they were sent away. They were, however, called back to the court's premises and asked to sign the judgment.

The convicted individuals were then taken towards central jail.

Later, family members of those convicted said they would file an appeal challenging the court's judgment.

Moreover, Jatoi's lawyer, Shaukat Hussain Zuberi, said he would file an appeal within seven days of today's ruling. Zuberi said the case's investigation was flawed from the very beginning.

A senior advocate, Kamal Azfar, recently filed a petition in the Sindh High Court to revisit the evidence on the weapon from which Jatoi fired at Shahzeb. That petition was also rejected today.

Speaking to DawnNews, Shahzaib's father said he was satisfied with the court's verdict.

Twenty-year-old Shahzeb Khan was gunned down on the night of December 24, 2012 when he was returning home along with his sister after attending a wedding. Shahzeb, son of a DSP, was murdered reportedly after he had an altercation with one of the suspects’ servant who had allegedly given verbal threats to the victim’s sister.

Jatoi, Siraj Talpur, his younger brother Sajjad Talpur and their house servant Ghulam Murtaza Lashari were charged with killing Shahzeb in the city’s Defence Housing Authority (DHA).

The case had attracted much media attention after the Supreme Court took a suo motu notice of the murder.

Opinion

Editorial

Digital growth
Updated 25 Apr, 2024

Digital growth

Democratising digital development will catalyse a rapid, if not immediate, improvement in human development indicators for the underserved segments of the Pakistani citizenry.
Nikah rights
25 Apr, 2024

Nikah rights

THE Supreme Court recently delivered a judgement championing the rights of women within a marriage. The ruling...
Campus crackdowns
25 Apr, 2024

Campus crackdowns

WHILE most Western governments have either been gladly facilitating Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, or meekly...
Ties with Tehran
Updated 24 Apr, 2024

Ties with Tehran

Tomorrow, if ties between Washington and Beijing nosedive, and the US asks Pakistan to reconsider CPEC, will we comply?
Working together
24 Apr, 2024

Working together

PAKISTAN’S democracy seems adrift, and no one understands this better than our politicians. The system has gone...
Farmers’ anxiety
24 Apr, 2024

Farmers’ anxiety

WHEAT prices in Punjab have plummeted far below the minimum support price owing to a bumper harvest, reckless...