KARACHI: An antiterrorism court remanded on Tuesday an official of the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital in police custody in an illicit weapons case.

Rangers had placed the hospital’s finance director, Fariduddin, under 90-day preventive detention on June 4 for an inquiry after receiving credible information about his alleged involvement in terrorism-related activities.

After the end of his preventive detention, the paramilitary force handed him over to police in an illicit weapons case registered at the Rizvia Society police station.

The investigation officer submitted in court that on a lead given by the held suspect a large cache of arms and ammunition, including Kalashnikovs and sub-machine guns, were found at Khajji ground.

He stated in the remand papers that the arms’ cache was dumped in a bid to secure it from being seized during the ongoing targeted operation and the weapons had been suspected to be used in targeted killing and their forensic examination report was still awaited.

The IO also submitted an initial investigation report claiming that during his 90-day detention, the suspect, said to be associated with a political party, told a joint investigation team about committing “serious” crimes such as administering poisonous injections to wounded political rivals or those who came to the hospital for treatment.

The report further alleged that the suspect also revealed to have secured the job on the basis of a fake degree and forged educational certificates and he also sold such forged certificates to others.

He allegedly committed these crimes in collusion with his absconding accomplices and was also involved in extortion, it added.

The report further said that he used to harass and blackmail the female staff at the hospital using different means to force them to commit heinous acts.

The police sought the custody of the suspect for questioning and arrest of his absconding accomplices.

The ATC-II judge handed the suspect over to police on 14-day remand directing the IO to produce him along with a progress report on the next hearing.

Published in Dawn, September 2nd, 2015

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