KARACHI, May 27: The prosecution in the Frenchmen killing case examined on Monday its star witness, a bread hawker, who identified the two accused before an anti-terrorism court.
Judge Feroz Mahmood Bhatti of the ATC-2, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, put off the hearing till Tuesday after the deposition of Zafar Iqbal.
Accused Mohammed Asif Zaheer and Rizwanullah, who were allegedly trained in a camp belonging to Harkat Jihad-i-Islami in Afghanistan, are facing the charges of killing 11 French naval engineers and two Pakistanis in a suicide bomb attack last year.
The French engineers, who were helping Pakistan build its Agosta 90-B submarine, were killed when an explosives-laden vehicle blew up their bus outside the Sheraton hotel.
The bread hawker deposed that for the past six years he had been selling breads and rusks in the Defence View area where the accused were also residing in a rented house (E-217/C).
He said that at around 6am on May 8, 2002 he saw accused Asif Zaheer connecting some wires in a silver-coloured Toyota. He said that after 15 minutes the same car, being driven by Asif, passed through Madina Chowk where he was standing.
The bread seller submitted that on January 8, two police officials contacted him in the morning when he was selling the breads in the vicinity. They asked him about the people living in the house No. E-217/C and about the silver-coloured car.
Later, the prosecution witness stated, he had identified the two accused during separate identification parades before a judicial magistrate.
The Pakistan Navy bus, carrying the French engineers, was about to move in front of Sheraton Hotel on Club Road in the morning when a red colour car stopped beside the bus and blew up with a bang, also destroying the bus completely and causing damage to the shops located at the ground floor of the Pearl Continental and Sheraton Hotels.
The victims included Leclerc Jean Yves, Bled Cedric, Groux Pascal, Le Carpentier Daniel, Chevassut Jean Michel, Leconte Pascal, Drouet Claude and Dupont Bernard. A Pakistani woman was also among the dead.
Accused Asif Zaheer and Rizwanullah are being represented by M. R. Syed and Gohar Iqbal respectively. Mohammed Ashraf Mughul has been appointed on state expenses for absconding accused, Mohammed Saeed alias Akram, Adnan Qamar alias Noni alias Osama, Abdul Samad, Basit and Mustafa.
Special public prosecutor Maula Bux Bhatti, assisted by court’s special public prosecutor Mazhar Qayyum, has so far examined as many as 38 prosecution witnesses.
JUDGMENT RESERVED: Judge Arshad Noor Khan of the ATC-3 reserved the judgment in a murder-cum-kidnapping for ransom case against a woman and her young son.
Chand Soof and her son Mehmood Ali were prosecuted for kidnapping a four-year-old boy in Landhi early this year. The two allegedly demanded Rs2.5 million for the release of the boy and later strangled him.
The judge fixed May 29 for the pronouncement of the verdict.
ACQUITTED: An additional district and sessions court of East acquitted Mohammed Hussain, a Sindh minister and leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, and three others in a murder case.
Judge Sagheer Hussain Zaidi exonerated the Muttahida men from the charges as the prosecution could not establish its case against them.
The four were prosecuted for killing Zafar Abbas, sector-in-charge of Mohajir Qaumi Movement in Landhi, in 1996.
Party chief Altaf Hussain and others were declared absconders in the case.
Meanwhile, the additional district and sessions judge, East, Kauser Sultan, acquitted four workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement in a case of violent activities and arson.
Sajid alias Chhotu, Sagheer Ahmed, Khalid Commando and Nasir Dhobi were booked by the Jamshed Quarters police on October 10, 1995 for resorting to violent activities and torching the vehicle of Mohammed Khan, the complainant.
They were acquitted in the case for want of incriminating evidence.