LAHORE, July 31: An accountability court on Wednesday remanded a head constable of Chamba House police station in the NAB custody for two weeks following his arrest on charges of assisting industrialist Seth Nisar in influencing three prosecution witnesses through a cell phone call.

While producing Head Constable Latif Raza before the court, the NAB alleged that he had provided the cell phone to Seth Nisar through which the latter made calls to different prosecution witnesses and threatened them with dire consequences.

The NAB had already alleged on the last hearing that Nisar had made calls to three prosecution witnesses including Nisar Mirza, Mian Abdur Razzaq and Mian Farzand Ali from the Chamba House police station and had exercised undue influence on them.

As alleged by the NAB, the three people had gone missing since that call and could not be traced despite repeated efforts. The NAB was granted two weeks on July 24 to trace out the three witnesses and completing investigation.

Following this incident, Chamba House police station SHO Multan Khan and other officials were ordered to be transferred 10 days back. The NAB disclosed that it needed the physical custody of the accused to probe the matter and find out the source through which the cell phone was provided to Seth Nisar since an accused in the NAB custody was not allowed to use a cell phone.

Accused Latif Rana alleged that he had been arrested by the NAB 16 days earlier and had been kept in illegal confinement since then. It was further alleged by the accused that the NAB authorities had been asking to sign certain documents and had given him assurance of being let off in case he signed the documents.

“I have done nothing and am not aware of the fact that Seth Nisar had used any cell phone from the Chamba House police station,” pleaded Latif.

It was also submitted by him that he did not know the three people alleged to have gone missing following a cell call from Seth Nisar nor had he connived with him in this regard.

The court after hearing the submissions from both sides allowed the NAB to keep Latif for two weeks and directed it to complete the investigation by the next hearing.

The reference against Seth Nisar was already fixed for Aug 7. Seth Nisar on the last hearing had denied allegations of influencing three witnesses through a cell phone call.