Uzair Baloch case: High-profile arrests likely in next two days

KARACHI: Key developments have been made in the investigation of banned People's Aman Committee (PAC) leader Uzair Baloch, sources privy to the matter told Geo News on Tuesday.

According to the sources, the arrested Lyari gangster has made some important revelations to the Joint Interrogation Team (JIT) formed to investigate Baloch, who is currently in Rangers’ custody for 90 days.

Based on the information provided, law enforcement personnel have been directed to carry out the arrests of some high-profile personalities in the next few days, said the sources.

Sources say the Sindh Rangers have also summoned estranged Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leader Zulfiqar Mirza, who was known to have close ties with the PAC leader when he served as Sindh home minister.

During his probe after his arrest, Baloch has confessed to his involvement in money-laundering, racketeering, land grabbing and other crimes. He is said to have also named some key personalities from whom he took directives.

According to reports, the Lyari gangster had escaped the country and fled to Dubai when the Karachi operation had started at the end of year 2013.

With a head money of Rs2 million, Baloch was claimed to have been arrested by Rangers personnel on the morning of January 30 from Karachi’s suburbs — almost a year and a half after he was said to have been taken into custody by the Interpol in Dubai.

Officials of the paramilitary force had said that they had prior intelligence of the accused being present in the area, following which they had alerted law enforcers.

He was subsequently remanded by an anti-terrorism court into Rangers custody for 90 days under Section 11-EEEE of the Pakistan Protection Act.

Wanted for over 55 cases linked to extortion and the target-killings of policemen and rival gang members, he was the key accused in the brutal murder of another Lyari gang-war ringleader Arshad Pappu.

Baloch was in 2005, arrested by a police task-force led by deceased SP Chaudhry Aslam but was later released on bail.

He was said to have taken over the gang, otherwise led by Rehman Dakait – another key leader of the Lyari gang-war – after the latter was shot dead by SP Aslam in an encounter in July 2009.  He had also been declared a proclaimed offender in absentia in a case by an ATC.