Sarah murder case: Court extends Shahnawaz’s physical remand for three days

ISLAMABAD: A local court on Monday extended the physical remand of prime suspect Shahnawaz Amir in the Sarah Inam murder case, for three more days.

Senior journalist Ayaz Amir’s son Shahnawaz allegedly killed his wife Sarah at home after a row over a family issue on September 23. Shahnawaz — who was detained by the police from a farmhouse in Islamabad’s Chak Shahzad area for being a suspect in his wife’s murder — confessed to committing the crime and said that he “thought” his spouse was having an affair with someone else. The couple was married for just three months.

The police presented suspect Shahnawaz before the court of civil judge Aamir Aziz upon the expiry of his physical remand, and requested a three-day extension for further interrogation. “Police have to recover the passport of Sarah Inam,” the investigation officer informed the court.

He said that the passport is “major evidence” as it would show Sarah’s travel history. Meanwhile, the lawyer of the complainants contended that Sarah was murdered in Shahnawaz’s house. He said that the suspect would get away if the police failed to recover Sarah’s passport even 14 days after the murder.

At this, the judge remarked that the case shouldn’t be ruined due to shortcomings in investigations. Later, the court accepted the police’s request to extend Shahnawaz’s physical remand. Earlier, a district and sessions court extended the interim bail plea of Shahawaz’s mother, Sameena Shah, till October 7. Advocate Raheem said that Sarah’s family doesn’t want to involve any innocent person in the case.