Armaghan’s remand extended until 10th; Shiraz sent to jail

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Tuesday extended the police remand of prime suspect Armaghan in the Mustafa Amir murder case until March 10. However, the court sent his accomplice Shiraz to prison on judicial remand.

Investigating officer Muhammad Ali produced both suspects before the ATC-IV judge at the judicial complex inside the central prison on the completion of their physical remand. Ali said the custody of Armaghan was required to interrogate him about the recovery of the iron stick with which he had beaten Amir.

He said the suspect also needed to be questioned by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) about his alleged involvement in cybercrime, and by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) about the recovery of weapons.

He added that Armaghan would also be interrogated by a joint investigation team (JIT) formed to investigate the murder case. He, therefore, requested the judge to hand over the suspect to police for six more days.

When asked about the progress made in the investigation thus far, the IO said that the statements of witnesses Ghulam Mustafa and Muhammad Zohaib had been recorded before a judicial magistrate under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

He said that on the night of February 4/5, Armaghan had beaten a girl at his bungalow, and blood-stained pieces of carpet collected from the crime scene were sent for a forensic analysis, which found two blood samples of an unidentified woman. The girl’s sample was obtained and sent for a DNA test, he added.

He also said Shiraz was presented before the judicial magistrate on March 3 to record his confessional statement under Section 164, but the statement could not be recorded, and the magistrate ordered that he be produced before the relevant ATC to remand him into judicial custody.

Prosecutor Zulfiqar Arain said that over 60 laptops and sophisticated weapons were recovered from Armaghan’s bungalow, leaving law enforcement agencies puzzled about what was actually happening there. The murder had shaken the entire country, and caused terror in the Defence area, he added.

The prosecutor claimed that teenagers between 15 and 16 years of age were lured into drugs, as hundreds of people were supplied drugs by the suspect. On the other hand, defence lawyers, including Abid Zaman, contended that their client was being maltreated by police to get his confessional statement. They said that there was no nexus between the murder case and other allegations.

The prosecution has not brought any evidence on record to link Armaghan with the alleged crime, they added, pleading with the court to remand him into judicial custody and order the IO to submit an interim charge-sheet within a stipulated time.

Speaking during the hearing, Armaghan complained that he had not been allowed to change his clothes for the past 15 days. He also said he was not feeling well. After hearing both sides, the judge extended Armaghan’s physical remand until March 10, and sent Shiraz to prison on judicial remand.

The judge said that it is a well-settled principle that if an accused gives confessional statement or refuses to give any confessional statement, he is remanded in judicial custody. The magistrate should have remanded Shiraz in judicial custody instead of referring the matter to the ATC for the purpose, he added.

On Monday the IO had produced Shiraz before the magistrate to record his confessional statement. However, it could not be recorded after the suspect claimed that he was being pressurised to do so. He claimed that he was the only eyewitness to Amir’s murder but was being dragged into the case as co-accused.