A deputy superintendent of police (DSP) and a station house officer (SHO) from the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) were suspended following the death of a suspect in custody, Karachi police said on Sunday.

The Karachi police issued directives placing the DSP, identified as Saeed Ahmed Rind, and the SHO, identified as Syed Atique Hussain Shah, under suspension with immediate effect pending a departmental inquiry into their conduct.

A statement issued by the spokesperson for Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Ahmed Nawaz Cheema said a constable and a former cop had also been arrested in connection with the case.

It added that the suspect, identified as Nizamuddin, had died in police custody on Jan 13, prompting Cheema to order an inquiry into the incident.

The statement said that the investigation disclosed that in the early hours of Jan 12, the suspect was apprehended in Manghopir on charges of extortion.

It added that he was subsequently brought to the SIU police station for investigation. The case against Nizamuddin was registered under Sections 322 (manslaughter), 365 (kidnapping or abduction) and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

During the investigation, the suspect died and his body was later discovered near his home in Manghopir, the statement said.

“The SIU’s former assistant sub-inspector, Sajid, and constable Shadab have been apprehended. Raids are being conducted to arrest assistant sub-inspector Aqeel and a private individual,” the statement said.

CIA DIG Cheema told Dawn.com that Karachi Additional Inspector General Khadim Hussain Rind had suspended the SIU DSP and SHO following the inquiry report.

Asked why the officials did not take the suspect’s body to the hospital, Cheema said that the policemen had dropped off the body in Manghopir so that his relatives could retrieve it.

Meanwhile, police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Dawn.com that the body of the suspect was brought to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for legal formalities.

She said that the cause of death would not be known for certain until the results of the samples were received. She said that there were “no apparent signs of violence”, adding that samples had been taken for both chemical analysis and histopathology.