Rape, murder case: Death sentence sought for cop

Karachi: The prosecution in a kidnapping-and-murder trial pleaded to the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) to award death sentences to the defendant policemen who allegedly kidnapped a three-year-old girl, raped her and later killed her in cold blood.

Bashir Ahmed and Noor Mohammad are charged with raping and killing a three-year-old girl after kidnapping her in Korangi on July 5 this year.

Special Public Prosecutor Mohammad Khan Buriro submitted that the prosecution proved its case beyond any shadow of doubt. He submitted that prosecution witnesses Munir and Yaseen identified the suspects while the chemical examiner and medico-legal officer’s reports also supported the prosecution’s case.

He requested the court to award capital punishment to the defendants. The prosecution placed 19 witnesses, including two eyewitnesses, to prove the guilt of the defendants.

The defendants’ counsel, Abdul Wahab Baloch, contended that there were glaring contradictions in the evidence and the medical and chemical examiners’ reports and the prosecution failed to prove its case against the defendants. Baloch also questioned trustworthiness of the eyewitnesses and said that their testimony could not be relied upon in the eyes of the law. He sought the acquittal of the defendants because “no case had been made out against them”.

The ATC, headed by Judge Syed Hasan Shah Bukhari, after hearing the closing arguments of both sides, reserved the judgment for August 31. The court also dismissed the transfer application filed by the defendants’ counsel regarding shifting the trial from the ATC to the sessions court.
Source: The News
Date:8/30/2009