Motorway gang-rape case: ATC sends co-suspect to 14-day judicial lockup

LAHORE: Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Tuesday sent the co-suspect in the motorway gang-rape case Shafqat Ali alias Bagga to 14-days judicial-lockup and directed the jail authorities to hold his identification parade and produce him again before the court on September 29.

Earlier, the Investigating Officer (IO) submitted an initial report to the court and stated that the suspect confessed to the crime. He said the suspect was not nominated in the FIR. He said the mobile phone and the SIM card used by the suspect at the time of the occurrence along with the CDR had been recovered. He said the suspect was arrested on suspicion and later his swabs were matched with the samples recovered from the victim.

Investigating Officer asked the court to allow shifting of the suspect to judicial lockup for the purpose of his identification parade. The court allowed the request and directed the IO to conclude the identification parade as early as possible. The court also directed the jail authorities to make special arrangements so the identity of the suspect could not be disclosed to other inmates of the prison as well as private persons.

The court when asked the suspect if he wanted to say something, he said, "Please be kind to me and free me". The court comforted the suspect that he would be acquitted if found innocent. A team-of Gujjarpura police station brought the co-suspect, to the court under strict security arrangements in an armoured personnel vehicle with a muffled face.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020