KARACHI, Feb 3: A body of a foreigner resembling abducted US journalist Daniel Pearl, found from the old Haji Camp area on Sunday night, created sensation among media organizations and police. However, later the wife of the missing US journalist confirmed that the body was not that of her husband.

Officials said that the authorities had taken the wife of the kidnapped Wall Street Journal reporter to identify the body of a young man, who appeared to be in his early 30s having fair complexion, in jeans and T-shirt.

Informed sources said that two empties were found from the place where the body was dumped. The man had bullet wounds in his temple.

The body as brought to Civil Hospital around 11.15pm, but was soon taken away to be kept in the Edhi mortuary at Sohrab Goth, sources said. They said an entry had been made in the mortuary register, but the body was not present there.

SSP Investigation, Manzoor Mughal told Dawn that the body had been thrown from a car in Kalakot area. The body was shifted to the Civil Hospital, and from there it was taken to a private hospital for identification.

He said some US Consulate officials accompanied by a woman were brought to the hospital to confirm whether the body was that of Daniel Pearl. The body was later returned to Civil Hospital for post-mortem.

He confirmed that no body had been thrown outside the Central Jail premises. Earlier, Reuter had reported quoting Fox News and ABC News networks that the body of the kidnapped journalist had been found. The American TV news networks had ‘confirmed’, quoting local police sources, that the body was that of Daniel Pearl.

From Washington, the Wall Street Journal said that the body found dumped on a roadside in Pakistan was not that of missing correspondent Daniel Pearl, adds Reuters.