Key suspect in Sehwan shrine blast remanded in CTD custody

KARACHI: The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Sindh police on Friday obtained five-day physical remand of a key suspect involved in the terrorist attack on the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan.

On Feb 16 this year, more than seventy-six people were killed and over 250 others were wounded when a suicide bomb ripped through the crowded shrine of the revered Sufi saint.

The investigation officer presented suspect Nadir Ali Jakhrani before the monitoring judge of anti-terrorism courts for physical remand in a case related to the possession of illicit arms and explosives.

He informed the judge that a cache of weapons and explosive material was recovered from the possession of the militant.

The judge granted physical remand of the suspect for five days and asked the investigation officer (IO) to present him along with progress report on the expiry of his remand.

Later, addressing a press conference, deputy inspector general of police (DIGP) CTD Amir Farooqui said suspect Nadir Jakhrani alias Murshid, the main suspect involved in the deadly attack, was arrested from Karachi’s Mangopir area.

He said Jakhrani had facilitated the suicide attacker, who was brought from Afghanistan for the purpose by keeping him at his home and later driving him to the shrine.

The CTD head said their another accomplice namely Dr Mustafa had already been killed in Mastung operation, adding that Mustafa was head of Sindh province’s IS faction.

Farooqui said the IS has been weakened in Pakistan as many of its members were either nabbed or killed in the operations launched by the military, and the rest have fled to Afghanistan.