KARACHI: A judicial magistrate on Friday remanded a DSP of the Anti-Vehicle Lifting Cell (AVLC) in police custody in a case pertaining to the alleged killing of a citizen.

DSP Qamar Ahmed, said to be Central District’s incharge of the AVLC, was arrested and booked over his alleged involvement in the killing of Hashim Sikandar Magsi and wounding his friend Shahzad at an unauthorised picket in Manghopir on July 12.

The investigating officer produced the detained official before the judicial magistrate (West) to seek his physical custody for questioning.

He submitted that initially it appeared that Assistant Sub-Inspector Mukhtar Pathan, along with his two/three colleagues, had signalled a motorcyclist with a friend riding pillion to stop at an unauthorised check post in Manghopir. When they did not stop, they opened fire, killing Magsi, who had purportedly returned from Dubai recently after 12 years to get married in Karachi.

The IO said the policemen were members of the team of DSP Ahmed whose mobile van was also under their use at the time of the offence.

The detained DSP was required to be interrogated to complete the investigation, including tracking down his subordinates, who were said to have gone into hiding to avoid their arrest, he said.

The IO added that an official sub-machine gun used in the offence, along with empty shell casing, had also been recovered and sent to the laboratory for a forensic analysis, a report of which was still awaited.

He requested for a 14-day physical remand of DSP Ahmed.

However, the magistrate remanded the detained official in police custody for four-days, directing the IO to produce him on the next date along with an investigation report.

A case was registered under Sections 302 (premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Manghopir police station.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2023