ATC sentences Karachi cop to death for staging fake encounter

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) has awarded the death sentence to a cop after finding him guilty of killing a citizen in a staged encounter at Karachi’s Shahrah-e-Faisal two years ago, The News reported on Sunday.

The accused along with his accomplice has been charged for killing Maqsood, who was traveling in a rickshaw, and injuring rickshaw driver Abdul Rauf on Shahrah-e-Faisal on January 18, 2018.

The culprits had painted the incident as an encounter between police and robbers.

The ATC sentenced capital punishment to Assistant Sub-Inspector Tariq while acquitted constables Abdul Waheed, Muhammad Shaukat, and Akbar Khan of the charges.

Meanwhile, the court issued a perpetual warrant for the arrest of the absconding accused, Ashiq Hussain Chachar.

Read more: Two police officers suspended for threatening citizens with 'fake encounter'

The judge also ordered the convict, Tariq, to pay Rs200,000 in compensation to the family of the victim, 27-year-old Maqsood.

Initially, the case was registered against unknown persons as police claimed that the victim was actually killed by the firing of the robbers while they were attacking the police.

However, on the orders of a sessions court, a case was lodged on the complaint of Maqsood’s father as he pleaded that his son was killed by the policemen and not by the robbers.

Later, Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act was added to the case on the recommendation of the investigation officer.

ASI Tariq was named as the main suspect in the case while Akbar and Waheed were charged with not adopting a proper strategy to arrest the robbers and trying to conceal the facts about the killing of Maqsood.

The ASI Tariq and Akbar were armed and they did not adopt a proper strategy to arrest the robbers, read the investigation report, unveiling that the former’s firing had left Maqsood dead and the rickshaw driver wounded and they all together tried to hide the facts.