KARACHI: The prime suspect in the murder case of Itteqa Moeen, a mechanical engineer who was gunned down by robbers in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, escaped from the City Courts lock-up after his court appearance on Monday, officials said on Tuesday.

The suspect, Zahir Ali, escaped from the City Courts lock-up on Monday evening. Following his court appearance in possession of illegal arms case, he was being sent to jail in a prison van but he cleverly hid behind the van instead of getting inside it. When the court gatekeeper, police constable Ishtiaq Ahmed, opened the main gate for the van, the suspect pushed him and fled towards Joriya Bazar and disappeared in the crowd.

Later, the City Courts lockup in-charge, Sub-Inspector Iftikhar Ahmed, lodged a complaint at the City Courts police station against the gatekeeper, Ishtiaq, under Sections 223 (escape from confinement or custody negligently suffered by public servant) and 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

According to the FIR, the gatekeeper informed the lockup in-charge that as soon as the court’s gate was opened to dispatch the prison van, the suspect, who had hidden behind the van, pushed him and escaped. Despite efforts by the lockup staff to chase the suspect, he managed to flee by taking advantage of the crowded area.

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SHO Shabbir Chaudhary told Dawn that the security of prisoners is the responsibility of the jail police, which operates under a ‘different chain of command.’ He further stated that it was around 6:30pm when he learned about the inmate’s escape, adding that the suspect was ‘not handcuffed at the time.’ Following the incident, a case was registered at the City Courts police station against the gatekeeper, and CCTV footage will be used to assist in capturing the suspect, he added.

Dawn made multiple attempts to contact the lockup in-charge for comments by visiting his office, but he could not be reached. A subordinate informed that the lockup in-charge was not present in the office as he was in a ‘meeting’ with the DSP of Risala police station.

Suspect Zahir was apprehended on June 10 in Balochistan by the Special Investigation Unit (SIU). He was wanted in connection with the murder of 27-year-old Itteqa Moeen, a gold medalist mechanical engineer, who was gunned down by armed robbers in Gulshan-i-Iqbal. The robbers had taken Moeen’s motorbike, cell phone, and cash.

However, upon the completion of the initial physical remand, a judicial magistrate sent Zahir and another suspect, Naveed, to jail custody.

On Tuesday, the investigation officer brought the gatekeeper, PC Ishtiaq, before the judicial magistrate (South), seeking 14 days of physical custody to check his criminal record and needed time for further interrogation. However, the court rejected the IO’s request and granted post-arrest bail to the suspect, as the offences were bailable, against a surety bond of Rs10,000.

Published in Dawn, June 26th, 2024