KARACHI – A Karachi court has expressed concern over the slow pace of investigation into the murder of young businessman Mir Raza and directed the new investigating officer to complete the probe by August 24.
The new investigating officer, Siraj Lashari, appeared before the court, while the complainant, Mir Hussain, also attended the hearing along with his lawyer, Jibran Nasir.
Lashari told the court that the statement of Muhammad Ahmed, Mir Raza’s business partner, had been recorded as a witness.
Ahmed told the court that he had appeared whenever summoned by police but was sometimes kept at the police station for up to six hours. He said he had also appeared before investigators on August 13.
The court told Ahmed that he must cooperate whenever police summoned him and directed him not to change his residence or leave the city without informing authorities. Ahmed is currently on interim bail.
The complainant’s lawyer argued that Ahmed’s statement had been recorded as a witness and warned that he could potentially be treated as an accused depending on the outcome of his bail proceedings.
Expressing concern over the pace of the investigation, the court said the victim’s family and residents of the city were anxious and stressed the need to determine the facts surrounding the killing.
Lashari said he had taken charge of the investigation on August 13 and that investigators were questioning around 35 people who had been in contact with Mir Raza. He said people who had remained in contact with the victim on the day of the incident were being specifically questioned on the basis of call-record data.
The investigating officer said Mir Raza and Ahmed had spoken to each other but added that no suspect had so far been identified or formally nominated as an accused.
The court extended Ahmed’s interim bail until August 24 and directed him to cooperate with investigators.
Lashari requested additional time, saying the investigation was still incomplete. The court granted the investigators until August 24 to complete the probe and ordered them to submit a progress report at the next hearing.
Meanwhile, investigators have reported further progress in the Mir Raza murder case, saying two additional members have been added to the investigation committee, taking its strength to nine.
Officials said the SHO of Shah Latif Town police station and a DSP had been included in the committee.
The committee has also retrieved Mir Raza’s mobile phone and smartwatch from the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). Both devices will be sent to a forensic laboratory in Lahore for examination.
Mir Raza’s family had earlier expressed reservations about having the devices forensically examined by the NCCIA.
The investigators also said additional evidence had been recovered from the crime scene as efforts to establish the circumstances surrounding the killing continue.
