AIG orders probe into man's death in police custody

KARACHI: Karachi’s Additional Inspector General of Police Dr Ameer Sheikh on Saturday took notice of a suspect’s death in the custody of the Taimuria police.

The AIG tasked Deputy Inspector General (DIG) West Zone Ameen Yousufzai to probe into the man’s death and submit a report within three days.

Accused Bilal was arrested in an injured condition after an alleged shootout with the police personnel within the jurisdiction of the Taimuria police station.

Questioning why the accused was not moved to hospital, if he was critically injured, the Karachi police chief directed the DIG to probe into the cause of the death and fix responsibility for it.

Officials of the Taimuria police station said the accused died of cardiac arrest caused by low blood pressure, rejecting the claim that bullet injuries resulted in his death.

Earlier, on Jan 2, a man identified as Qaim Ali allegedly died in the custody of the Defence police. However, the police claimed that a citizen, Tariq Mustafa, informed them that his driver suffered a heart attack while sitting in his car outside his home and sought police’s help to shift him to a hospital.

After receiving information, the police shifted him to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Disease (NICVD) where doctors declared him dead on arrival. His family members, however, alleged that the man died in police custody because of torture.