Police remain clueless about the perpetrators of the high-profile target killing of an official of the Sindh Bar Council (SBC) in Karachi a day after the murder.
A case has been registered against unknown suspects at the Sharea Faisal police station on the complaint of the victim’s brother Rizwan. Police have included Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) in the FIR.
The investigators have also received the forensic report, which suggests that the murder weapon in the SBC official’s murder was not used in any previous target killing in the city. Forensic experts have thoroughly examined the spent bullet shells of a 30-bore pistol found at the crime scene.
Police have also obtained the recordings of multiple CCTV cameras installed at different locations, and are trying to map the routes used by the target killers before and after the incident. They are also carrying out geo-fencing to aid in their investigation.
Officials said the case is being investigated from different angles, including the possibility of a personal enmity or the hiring of professional paid killers. Statements of the eyewitnesses are also being recorded to help solve the case.
“Efforts like geo-fencing, mapping, camera footage and statements are underway to trace and arrest the suspects,” Sharea Faisal SHO Rana Haseeb told The News. “But so far there is no headway in the case.”
The family of the deceased took his body with them to their home town Shikarpur, where he was laid to rest. Police are yet to record the statements of the family members of the deceased SBC official.
Irfan Ali Mahar was shot dead at 7:54am on Wednesday near his residence located close to Chappal Plaza in Block 13 of Gulistan-e-Jauhar. “He was attacked while returning home after dropping off his son to school,” the SHO had said after the incident. “His 13-year-old nephew, who accompanied him to school, is heavily traumatised.”
The officer said the victim was shot five times with a 30-bore pistol, and the police had recovered three empty shells that were sent to the forensic division of the Sindh police for ballistics cross-matching.
According to the CCTV camera footage acquired by the police, the suspects were wearing helmets, black trousers and uppers. One of them was seen firing at the vehicle on the driver’s side. The target killers seemed professionals. They shot the victim repeatedly at a point blank range, killing him on the spot.
Police said the deceased had gone to drop off his son to the school, from where he was followed by the assassins on a motorbike, which was corroborated with the help of the CCTV camera footage.
The Crime Scene Unit of the police, which had cordoned off the crime scene, said that two motorcyclists used a .30-calibre handgun to kill the man. The target killers appeared to be professionals, who attacked the victim calmly on the right side of the car.