ATC extends Armaghan’s physical remand in Mustafa murder case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Karachi on Tuesday extended the physical remand of Armaghan Qureshi, prime accused in the Mustafa Amir abduction and murder case, till March 10.

The case relates to a BBA student’s alleged kidnapping and murder after he went missing on January 6. During the proceedings today, Armaghan was produced in court by police.

At the outset of the hearing, a government lawyer informed the court that Armaghan was allegedly responsible for supplying hundreds of youth on drugs and also subjected several girls and boys to torture.

He added that the accused was “a very clever person” and the investigation team has yet to recover the murder weapon from the accused.

Elaborating further, the lawyer added that Armaghan stayed in Skardu after committing the crime and returned to Karachi by road. He also said that a forensic examination was required for the 64 laptops seized from the residence of the accused.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and other institutions have also launched an investigation, an investigation officer told the ATC judge, adding that they have to recover the murder weapon.

The government lawyer added that the accused was still making revelations, therefore, he should be sent on physical remand till March 10.

The judge questioned how many cases were filed against the accused. The lawyer said Armaghan was also facing cases filed by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD).

The court then questioned the timeframe for the submission of a charge sheet. The government lawyer replied that the investigation has not yet concluded and again sought an extension of Armaghan’s physical remand.

The court accepted the plea and extended the accused’s physical remand till March 10.

In another development today, the co-accused, Shiraz, was sent to jail on judicial remand by the ATC.

The whole saga unfolded after Armaghan opened fire at a team of the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) — a specialised unit of the Karachi police responsible for tackling cases related to murder and extortion — during a raid at his residence in Karachi’s DHA earlier this month.

The deceased’s body — found by police in a car near the Hub checkpoint on January 12 and buried by the Edhi Foundation on January 16 — was later exhumed and subsequently buried after an initial DNA profiling report confirmed that the mortal remains belonged to Mustafa.

Earlier, it was learnt that the arrest of Armaghan and Sahir Hasan, son of a renowned actor, has disrupted the operations of the drug cartel in Karachi’s upmarket neighbourhoods, The News reported.

With possible facets of money laundering, fraud and an illegal call centre, the investigation also unraveled the presence of alleged drug trafficking in the said case.

The resulting crackdown has caused a halt in the supply of marijuana — commonly known as weed — causing massive financial losses to drug dealers.

Amir’s murder and the subsequent arrests have exposed multiple aspects of a drug cartel that had been operating in Karachi for years.