KARACHI, July 1: The man allegedly involved in the killing of Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai has been identified as chief of the militant wing of the banned Sipah-i-Mohammad Pakistan, Dawn learnt here on Thursday.

Mufti Shamzai was shot dead on May 30 in an ambush soon after he left his home, a few yards away from Jamia Binnoria in Jamshed Town. His son, nephew and chauffeur were also wounded in the attack.

Police said the only witness in the Shamzai murder case was the police guard Khair Mohammad who was present in the double-cabin vehicle of Mufti Shamzai at the time of the attack. He returned the fire and later he got the sketches prepared.

They said that Khair Mohammad was shown photographs of known and wanted criminals and he identified Ali Mustahsan as one of the assailants. Khair Mohammad told investigators that he had seen Ali firing at the double-cabin vehicle.

As he returned the fire, one of Ali's accomplices got injured and he with other accomplices took his injured associate to a car and sped away. Sources said that Ali was the chief of the militant wing of the banned Sipah-i-Mohammad, and was also a close aide of the commander of the banned group Raza Imam.

He is supposed to have escaped from the country, they added. They said that Ali Mustahsan was also involved in an attack on the van of Jamia Farooqia in Shah Faisal Colony on Jan 28, 2001, in which five people were killed.

Besides, the sources said, Ali Mustahsan was also wanted in a number of sectarian killing cases, arson, attack on police, and other heinous crimes. City police chief Tariq Jamil said that the suspect involved in Mufti Shamzai's killing had been identified, but he declined to disclose suspect's identity.

He said that an extensive search had been launched to arrest him and as soon as he is picked up, his arrest would be made public. The sources said that the police guard Khair Mohammad had been kept in protective custody as he was the only witness in the incident. Sindh police had also requested the Balochistan police to keep an eye on borders and help arrest Ali.