Mufti Shamzai, cops murder accused held in Karachi

ISLAMABAD: A suspect identified as Wasi Haider has been arrested who is accused of killing Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai, Mufti Muhammad Abdul Majeed Deenpuri, Hafiz Muhammad Ahsan, Mufti Saleh Muhammad Qazi, police officers and others.
DIG West Feroz Shah on Sunday said police had arrested accused Wasi Haider from Karachi’s Federal B Industrial Area and recovered weapons and a grenade from him. The suspect belongs to a political party, he added.
According to a news channel, police officials said the accused had been involved in the target killing activities in Karachi since 2005. They said that Haider and his accomplices allegedly carried out the murder of Mufti Shamzai in 2005 near the Gurumandir area. In 2007 he allegedly killed local resident Safdar in the Lines Area for not paying extortion money. In 2009, he murdered SHO Nasirul Hasan also in the Lines Area neighbourhood. In January 2013, Haider allegedly gunned down Jamia Banuri Uloom Islamia top scholar Mufti Muhammad Abdul Majeed Deenpuri, his fellow cleric Muhammad Saleh and Hassan Shah in broad daylight on the busy Shahra-e-Faisal Road, officials added.
Officials also accused the suspect of carrying out the target killings of several other political and religious leaders, activists and local residents for not paying extortion money.
Haider is said to have moved to Karachi in 2002 when he found residence in the Lines Area locality. In 2004, he joined a political party.
Haider is under police custody and is being further interrogated. Meanwhile, Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, killed two criminals of the Uzair Baloch Group in a targeted operation on suspected hideouts of gang war criminals in Lyari Town here.
According to the spokesman Sindh Rangers on Sunday, the Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) conducted an intelligence based targeted operation in the Lyari Town on suspected hideouts of criminals.
Sabah adds: The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Karachi Police on Sunday claimed to have arrested the alleged mastermind behind the killing of senior journalist Aftab Alam, who was shot dead last week.
The sources in the CTD also said that three other suspects, identified by the mastermind, were also taken into custody. They said that the suspects were also involved in an armed attack on a bakery besides the killing of Aftab Alam in North Karachi. The sources further said that mobile phones and arms were also recovered from the possession of the suspects who had been trained abroad.
Sources in the CTD said the suspects were being interrogated about more incidents of targeted killings in the city. Names of the suspects have not been disclosed.