‘Investigators doing utmost to resolve journalist’s murder mystery’

ISLAMABAD: The Director General Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Mohsin Hassan Butt said Thursday that the suspects involved in the assassination of Arshad Sharif would be identified on the basis of substantial evidence upon completion of the probe by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT).

However, the individuals supervising the case suspect the involvement of Kenya based two brothers Khurram and Waqar in the killing of slain journalists on the basis of strong evidence. The two brothers were the host of Arshad Sharif in Kenya.

Talking to The News, the DG FIA - who was briefed by the two-member JIT comprising of Deputy Director General Intelligence Bureau Omar Shahid Ahmed and Director FIA Athar Waheed on their return from Kenya – revealed that the evidences indicated that torture before killing of Arshad Sharif could not be ruled out. “However, reaching on the conclusion will be before time,” the DG said.

The sources said the investigation team, which went to Kenya for the probe into Arshad Sharif’s murder, assessed during the investigation that Arshad Sharif visited the shooting range along with Khurram Ahmad in the evening of the day of occurrence of the incident and had dinner with the other people.

Before that, Arshad Sharif also visited the shooting range and also shot some fires at the targets. Evidently, he was brutally tortured at the shooting range and later was shot him twice - once in the temple and the other in the chest - killing him on the spot after torture.

The torture signs and marks on different parts of body of Arshad Sharif indicate that four nails were mercilessly pulled off his fingers and the right wrist bone was also broken. These findings were made in the post mortem report conducted by doctors in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) mortuary.

The two-member investigation team informed the DG FIA that the circumstantial evidence suggest that after killing Arshad Sharif the suspects decided to shift the body from the shooting range to any other place for unknown reasons and the responsibility was given to Khurram. He placed the body in the front seat and left for some undescribed destination to dispose of the body. On his way, he observed a police picket at the junction point of the roads and the police flagged him to stop but he tried to speed away. As he tried to dodge the police, the police shooters followed the car and fired multiple shots at the vehicle from the rear but the car disappeared from the scene. After escaping from police, Khurram contacted Waqar and told him about the occurrence. Waqar directed Khurram to immediately return home.

The sources, quoting the JIT report said Waqar and Khurram are Canadian nationals who are living in Kenya. They are involved in different ventures, including owning a shooting training range where they trained private people, private security guards, gangs and institutions.

The sources said Khurram and Waqar failed to satisfy the investigating officers when they were interviewed. He said that in the light of the JIT’s finding the FIA would lodge an FIR against the people evidently involved in the killing of Arshad Sharif, including Waqar, Khurram and others found involve in the assassination of the journalist.

They said the suspects will be brought to Pakistan to face the murder trial. The FIA will bring them to Pakistan by using extradition treaty if any exists between the two countries. However, if they flee Kenya and reach Canada, as they are Canadian nationals, the FIA will approach the Interpol to get Red Warrant against them and bring them to Pakistan after sharing concrete documentary evidence against them.