Witnesses in Naqeeb murder case identify cops from Rao’s team

The two witnesses in the extrajudicial murder case of Waziristan tribesman Naqeebullah Mehsud have identified three policemen from former SSP Rao Anwar’s team accused of being involved in the January 13 fake encounter which claimed Naqeeb’s life.

Hazrat Ali and Muhammad Qasim, who say they were arrested along with Naqeeb by a police team led by Rao Anwar but later released, were presented before the judicial magistrate south on Wednesday and identified Sub-inspector Allah Yar, Head Constable Muhammad Iqbal and Constable Arshad Ali in an identification parade.

The witnesses told the judge that the three suspects were among the team of cops which arrested them and Naqeeb and kept them in illegal detention. They added that at the time of the arrests, the three accused policemen were in plain clothes and were holding Kalashnikovs.

Earlier, Constable Arshad Ali had claimed to the court that police had shown his clothes to the witnesses earlier and given them hints to identify him as a suspect based on that. Upon this, the magistrate ordered the police to present Arshad for the parade in different clothes. Officials did that, however, the witnesses still identified him and others.

Ali and Qasim told the court that the constable was also in the police mobile which carried them from Sher Agha Hotel to Sachal police picket on the night they were picked up.

The attorneys for two witnesses expressed their satisfaction over how the identification parade was carried out and said the court had fulfilled all its legal obligations in doing so. The judge transferred the case to an anti-terrorism court and the suspects are expected to be presented there today.

Earlier this week, the two witnesses had recorded their statements in court, saying they had committed no crimes but were picked up and tortured by the police team headed by Rao Anwar. They said they were released on January 6 and later came to know through the media that the SSP had killed Naqeeb in a fake encounter.