Court bails out accused in extortion case

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has ordered the release of a suspect on bail in a case involving alleged extortion from the owner of a known herbal store in the provincial capital.A single bench of Justice Sahibzada Asadullah heard the case, wherein the suspect, Arsalan, was represented by Syed Sikandar Shah advocate.

During the hearing, Shah informed the court that his client, Arsalan, was accused of demanding extortion from the owner of Sheikh Herbal Store in Peshawar and issuing serious threats upon non-payment.

The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) subsequently arrested Arsalan. However, Shah argued that there was no substantial evidence against his client, and the store owners did not initially name him in the complaint.

The lawyer claimed that the police included Arsalan in the case after his arrest. He stated that it remained to be proven whether the allegations against Arsalan were accurate and that there might be bad faith involved.